


Brotober

by CharEmblem, clausbook



Category: Mother 3
Genre: Bro - Freeform, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-18
Updated: 2020-01-27
Packaged: 2021-02-18 07:10:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 31
Words: 22,633
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21840313
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CharEmblem/pseuds/CharEmblem, https://archiveofourown.org/users/clausbook/pseuds/clausbook
Summary: A collection of one shots starring Fuel and Claus, based on the prompts of Inktober and published like two months later because the writer is slow af and procrastinates hardArtwork by Clausbook
Relationships: Claus & Fuel (Mother 3)
Kudos: 9





	1. Ring

**Author's Note:**

  * For [clausbook](https://archiveofourown.org/users/clausbook/gifts).



* * *

The gentle beach breeze brushed over Claus as he sat on his towel, laid out quickly upon the sand. Beside him was a towel without its owner, who had left to get a “snack”, and vanished without a trace.

Claus took a bite out of his jerky, performing another search for his friend, which turned up fruitless. Richie, Angie, and Nana were up on the cliff, talking up a storm, but at least they managed to stay together. Maybe Claus should’ve just invited Lucas instead…

 _Nahhh, this is better,_ he thought. _Lucas would want to go home after one dip._

“Hey, Claus, I’m back!”

He turned towards Fuel, who carried a bunch of food in his arms. Claus frowned as he sat on his towel, laying out everything upon it, apparently not caring too much if a bit of sand got on it. 

“Dude, didn’t you eat before we left?”

“Yeah? Swimming makes me hungry!”

“ _Everything_ makes you hungry! And you didn’t even swim, you just floated!”

Fuel took a bite out of his nut bread in defiance. Claus knew better than to question him, he’s always been eating like this. 

“You’re gonna get sick,” Claus groaned.

Fuel shrugged. “‘Least I won’t be hungry.”

And he continued eating, lying back fully on his towel. He kicked his feet up into the air, and wiggles his toes a bit.

“Bro, nobody wants to see that shit,” Claus said, pointing them out. “Put your feet down.”

“Can’t you see I’m sunbathing?”

“Last time you ‘sunbathed’ you got the worst sunburn I’ve ever seen! You put _sunscreen_ on, right?”

“Of course I did! Geez, what are you, my Dad?”

“Fine, don’t blame me if it happens again. Pass the onion rings, will ya?”

“Get ‘em yourself dude, you’re so lazy.”

“Oh, yeah, you’re one to talk,” Claus muttered, reaching for the rings. “Geez, how much food did you buy?”

“Uhhhh, fries, chips, onion rings, and bread. You know; a snack!”

“Bro, that’s like, a meal.”

“I’m a growing boy, Claus,” Fuel laughed, waving a hand in the air. “Get off my case!”

Claus sighed, but he couldn’t help but smile. By now, the sun was truly upping the heat, and a lack of nearby cloud cover meant it be doing so for some time. Claus bit into his onion ring, shielding his eyes from the sun’s rays.

“Hey, Claus,” Fuel called, his mouth full of food. “Did I tell ya about that time I prank called Thomas?”

“A bunch of times, bro. It’s the one with Hugh Ass, isn’t it?”

Fuel grinned at the thought of that story. “No, man, it’s the one with I.P Freely, it’s hilarious! So anyway there I was-“

Claus tuned him out, considering he’d heard every single one of his stories about five times. He took out another onion ring and began to eat, relieved at the sight of incoming clouds.

But with his attention divided between eating, blocking out the sun, and tuning out his friend he didn’t even notice the seagulls approaching him. 

“Unh…?” he muttered, noticing the group too late. “Ah-!”

The seagulls pounced on him in an attempt to feed, causing him to fall onto his towel as they swarmed. Fuel immediately erupted into laughter as Claus desperately swat at them, trying to shoo them away.

“Guess I forgot to tell you, bro,” Fuel managed to sputter. “The seagulls got _really_ aggressive when you were gone!”

And he kept on laughing for the minute it took to finally get rid of every seagull. Claus panted as they left, checking his hands for the bumps they left. Fuel was practically dying at this point, helpful as he was.

Claus, of course, has his priorities straight. “Aw, fuck, they made me drop my onion rings!”

Fuel snickered as he peeked over his friend's shoulder, looking at the rings practically buried in the sand. 

“Five bucks down the drain, huh?” he shrugged. Claus didn’t respond, a frown on his face, and one that didn’t go unnoticed. 

“You’re not gonna cry, are you?” Fuel laughed, picking up the now-sandy onion rings. 

“Oh, shut up.”

“Cheer up, Claus, geez,” Fuel said, pausing for a moment to think. “…Here, I know, give me your finger!”

“What?” Claus questioned. “Bro, that sounds pretty g-“

“Just give it here, will you?

Claus obeyed, albeit reluctantly, and held up his finger. Fuel placed an onion ring on it, smirking as he did so.

“Ahem, will you be my bro, bro?” he asked in a deep, dramatic voice, getting on one knee. 

Claus caught on quickly, holding in his laughter. He cupped his hand over his mouth as if to gasp.

“Bro, of _course_ bro!”

Fuel started grinning, which just made them both laugh. It was just like old times, in a way, like they hadn’t even been separated for 3 years. Claus took an onion ring of his own, and gestures toward his friend’s hand.

“Let me do it, bro, come on!”

“Alright, calm down!” Fuel said, handing over his hand.

Claus took hold of it quickly-a bit too quick. Fuel immediately winced at his grip, his arm a pink-red at this point.

“Not _that_ hard, man, what’re you doing?!”

“Fuel, that’s a sunburn! You put sunscreen on, right?”

“Did _you?_ ” he asked, pulling Claus’s free hand up, sending a sharp pain throughout his body. “You’re sunburnt too!”

“Ow! What the hell, Fuel?!”

“You did it first!”

“I didn’t _know!_ ”

“Sure you didn’t! Oh, let go, it’s starting to itch!”

“Don’t scratch at it, you idiot! Fuel, stop!”

Yes, it was just another day in Tazmily for them, and just another lesson they’ll never learn.


	2. Mindless

* * *

“…You guys are really out to get me, huh?”

Claus, Fuel, and Lucas each stared at the cheese pizza laid out on the table. Lucas turned towards Fuel, silently questioning him.

“I’m not involved in this,” Lucas sighed, grabbing a slice of pizza. “You two sort it out.”

Claus and Fuel watched Lucas leave the room, leaving the two alone. Claus eyed his friend, who laughed awkwardly and shrugged.

“Guess they didn’t hear me clearly, bro.”

“You ordered a cheese pizza on purpose!”

“No I didn’t!” Fuel exclaimed, throwing his hands up. “Look, you’ll probably eat it anyway, you’re stupid like that!”

No objections there. Claus folded his arms.

Fuel’s grin faded. “You brought lactaid, right?” 

Silence. The one thing Claus has to forget, and it was that. It wouldn’t stop him from eating that pizza, but Fuel  _ would. _

“Uh,” Claus began, hesitating for a moment. “Y-yeah, I did.”

“…No you didn’t. You’re so bad at lying, dude!”

“Look, I forgot, alright? But I’m hungry!”

“You’re gonna die if you eat that! Eat something else!”

“Bro, you bought a pizza,” Claus explained, a serious expression on his face. “I’m gonna eat it.”

“No you’re not. Just wait here, alright? I’ll buy you like, jerky or something.”

There was a pause as Fuel waited for his friend to get the message. He took a few steps back, before making a gesture that he was watching, and finally leaving. Claus sat at the table, and waited to hear the door slam shut.

Now, there are many words to describe Claus. Impulsive, rash, stupid, but he had some level of impulse control, didn’t he? Surely, he wouldn’t perform such a mindlessly dangerous stunt, especially at the request of his best friend? 

“Oh, who am I kidding?” Claus said, quickly reaching for a slice of pizza.

“Claus,” Lucas called. “I heard the door slam, are you still her-“

Lucas walked back into the room, wiping his hands with a paper towel. The twins stared at each other for a minute, before Lucas sighed.

“Oh, forget it,” he huffed, leaving once again. “Fuel’s gonna kill you.”

“Not if this pizza kills me first!” Claus smirked, ready to dig in.

The door swung open, and Fuel stepped back into the room, catching Claus in the middle of his act and dropping both his bags and his jaw. A few seconds of silence passed before Claus took on a determined expression and pulled the pizza in.

“Bro,  _ STOP! _ ”

It was already too late. It was the beginning of the end. And after that first bite Claus was never seen alive again.

* * *

“And that’s how I lost my best friend, Alle,” Fuel said with a frown. “He was just so stupid, he put himself down.”

Claus groaned from across the room. “I can  _ hear  _ you!”


	3. Bait

* * *

Fuel sat on the edge of the cliff, holding his fishing rod in one hand and resting his head in the other. It was early in the morning, with the clouds just barely rolling away for the sun to shine through. Cerulean beach was as quiet as ever, not even the gulls were out; and evidently, neither were the fish.

Fuel yawned, and shot a bored look at his friend Claus sitting beside him, who was visibly frustrated with the lack of anything eventful. 

“You caught anything yet?” Fuel asked sarcastically.

Claus immediately threw his hands up. “Ugh! Nothing’s biting-”

His fishing rod slipped off the cliff and fell into the water below, earning a snicker from Fuel. 

“Nice one, Claus.”

“Shut up!” Claus shot, folding his arms. “Who’s stupid idea was this, anyway?!”

Fuel reeled in his line and stood up. “Uh… yours, bro. You’re the one who wanted to come out here again.”

“Yeah, ‘cuz I thought we’d actually catch something this time! Y’know, like a huge fish!”

“Do you have ‘huge fish’ bait, dude?” Fuel said, packing up his stuff. “We’re not gonna catch whatever  _ you’re  _ thinking about with worms.” 

Claus paused for a moment, before hitting his palm with his fist. “That’s it! Fuel, I’ve got an idea!”

“Oh no.”

“You said we need bigger bait, right?” Claus said, a smirk on his face. “Well I know just what to do!”

Fuel immediately knew this wouldn’t end well. Especially with that look in Claus’s eyes.

* * *

“Uh, so why do you guys need me, again?” Lucas asked tenderly, tugging at the rope tied around him. “And why do I need to wear this?”

“You’ll see, Lucas!” Claus reassured. “Just hang tight!”

Fuel frowned as he helped carry the wooden log from behind with Claus. Lucas followed closely behind, his rope binding him to the log. Something about Claus’s plan just wasn’t adding up, even an ten-year old knew that.

“Claus,” Fuel finally whispered. “This isn’t gonna work, y’know.”

“Pfft, it’ll work, Fuel.”

“But you know what fish do to  _ bait, _ right?”

“Of course I know!” Claus insisted, much to Fuel’s dismay. “Geez, quit worrying, bro, everything’s gonna work out!”

Somehow he doubts that. Fuel sighed in defeat as the trio approached the cliff again, deciding it’d be much funnier to just let this blow up in Claus’s face. It’s not like he was listening to his warnings anyway.

“Okay, Lucas, we’re gonna catch a  _ giant _ fish,” Claus explained. “So we’re gonna need your help…”

Lucas nodded naively. “Okay! What do I do?” 

“Nothing!” Claus announced proudly. He pointed towards the water. “We’re just gonna lower you into the sea and wait for a fish to come up.”

“W-What?!” Lucas exclaimed as Fuel stifled a laugh. “I don’t wanna do  _ that! _ ”

“Claus, this is stupid,” Fuel said, crossing his arms. “We can’t do this!”

“Are you two actually chickening out?! This is a  _ great _ idea!”

Fuel rolled his eyes. “Claus, this is the worst idea you’ve had yet.”

“Yeah, Claus,” Lucas agreed. “It’s saying something if  _ Fuel’s  _ not in on this!”

“Yea-What’s that supposed to mean?!”

Claus opened his mouth to defend himself, but instead of his voice coming out, someone else’s did. And it was a very angry voice, at that.

“Claus! Fuel!” Hinawa hissed, storming towards them both. “What are you two doing to Lucas?!” 

“Mom?!”

“Hey,” Fuel exclaimed, placing his hand on his chest. “It wasn’t  _ my _ idea!”

Hinawa immediately bent down to untie Lucas from the rope, glaring at the pair as he did so.

“I don’t care whose idea it was, did you think it’d be funny to pick on poor Lucas?! He just wants to be funny and cool like you two! Especially  _ you, _ Claus, I’d think you have some level of mercy for your own brother!”

“But-” Claus immediately protested. 

“But nothing! We’re supposed to be visiting your Grandpa in a week, and if this is the type of behavior you’re going to be showing, then perhaps you should just stay home and help your father tend to the  _ sheep! _ ”

“Anything but that, Mom, that’s so  _ boring! _ ”

“Then I suggest you start apologizing to your brother!” Hinawa ordered, gesturing in the direction of the twins’ house. “And I expect no complaints when it comes to doing your chores from now on! Go home and get started, Claus!”

Claus put his hands in his pockets. “Yes, Mom…”

He slumped off slowly, leaving Fuel with the full awkwardice of watching your friend get punished by their mom. Hinawa took Lucas by the hand and stood up, sighing.

“Fuel… I’m sorry, I don’t think you and Claus should see each other until we get back,” Hinawa breathed, before wagging a finger at him. “I’ll tell Lighter, so don’t think about doing anything reckless.”

Fuel didn’t bother to protest. Somehow, he knew it wouldn’t change anything. He watched Hinawa lead Lucas back towards the village square, turning towards the ocean silently. Maybe it was for the best. Maybe he was just… a bad influence. 

* * *

That was three years ago, the last day he saw his best friend before he vanished without a trace. Fuel frowned at his reflection in the water. He didn’t even say goodbye, he didn’t even part on a good note, all because Claus had to be stupid that one time. Why did his last memories of him have to be of his back, walking away? Where did everything go wrong, and what could he have done to fix it? Whose fault was this? Was it Hinawa’s? Was it Claus’s? His? They’re both dead, and he’s alive, so who else could be blamed?

Maybe if he had just tried harder. Maybe if he had just used bigger bait.


	4. Freeze

* * *

Winter had come early to Tazmily, and it was quick to blanket the village in a ton of snow; which of course showed little signs of stopping. Snow that had to be shoveled… but by who, one would wonder.

None other than Lighter’s son, of course. After all, it’ll teach him “responsibility for his actions,” or whatever. Nevertheless, Lighter lead his son Fuel towards the village square. Fuel tightened his grip on his shovel as they passed the train station.

“Why do  _ I  _ have to do this?” Fuel grumbled, picking at his jacket. “I didn’t sign up for this!”

“It’s your punishment,” Lighter explained. “You and Claus aren’t getting off the hook this time, y’hear?”

“Oh, it was just a prank! Totally harmless, Dad, honestly!”

“You buried Pusher’s car engine in the forest, Fuel, it’s a wonder he’s not making you do something worse.”

Fuel rolled his eyes. “Oh, Pusher’s such a stick in the mud! Can’t he take a joke?”

“He’s the mayor, boy,” Lighter sighed, pointing over his shoulder towards Pusher’s home. “Now no more protests, you’re gonna shovel his front yard and you better not screw anything up.”

“Whatever.”

“I’m serious, Fuel, no games.”

Fuel pulled his hood over his head and began to work. “Yeah, yeah, yeah!”

Lighter shook his head sadly, lingering for a few moments before gazing southward. Almost as cue, the wayward Flint dragged his own son towards the mayor’s home, with an equal amount of protest.

“Geez, Dad, you’re just gonna let Pusher tell you what to do?!” Claus argued. “You didn’t turn into a coward or anything did you?!”

“No,” Flint said flatly.

“So you’re making me do this because you  _ want  _ to?!”

“Yes.”

Flint released his grip on Claus, pushing him towards Fuel without much care. The boys immediately greeted each other warmly, much to their fathers impatience.

“Get to work, you two,” Lighter ordered. “We expect you to be home before noon.”

Their kids obeyed, albeit reluctantly and with the audible groans, which were promptly ignored. 

“Put your back into it, Claus!” Flint chuckled. “Well, Lighter, I’ll be takin’ my leave.”

“As will I. Be seein’ you, you old coot.”

“Who you callin’ old, with your silver locks?”

“Hah! Watch it, baldy!”

They laughed, much to their son’s annoyance, before finally leaving for their homes to do whatever it was Fathers do. Fuel and Claus each watched their respective fathers disappear into the distance before immediately glaring at each other and ditching their shovels.

“Bro, this is all your fault,” Claus shot. “You just had to go and piss off Pusher!”

“ _ My  _ fault? You’re the one who said ‘Man, wouldn’t it be great to see ol’ Pusher get mad?’ I was doing what you wanted!”

“Yeah, get mad at someone that wasn’t us, dipshit, why’d you think that was a good idea?!”

“You didn’t stop me, dumbass!” Fuel shot, getting into Claus’s face.

“Don’t call  _ me _ a dumbass, dumbass!”

“Alright,  _ fuckhead- _ “

“Oi, idiot one and two,” Richie called smugly. “Shouldn’t ya be working on Pusher’s yawn?”

The boys glared at her as she chewed on her nut bread, clearly enjoying the sight. Fuel groaned almost immediately, stuffing his hands in his pockets.

“What do you want?”

“Just came to see how our resident numpties were doing. I see you two haven’t changed a bit, arguing like an old married couple.”

“Don’t you have somewhere else to be, Richie?” Claus huffed. “Can’t you go foam at the mouth over Nana or someone.”

“Aye, you’re a cheeky one, Claus. That was one time, mind you.”

“Yeah, one time too many. You’re weirder than Nana of all people. Kinda saying something, Rich.”

Fuel snickered. “Nice one, Claus,” he said as Richie sighed.

She rolled her eyes at their fist bump before taking a seat on a nearby bench, intent on finishing off her food. The boys ignored her, especially Fuel, whose attention was fixed on the metallic street pole nearby.

“Hey, Claus,” he waved, beckoning him over. “Twelve DP says you won’t lick this pole!”

“You’re on!”

“Oh, this is a new low. You two rubbered, or something? It’s bloody freezing out here, you know what that does to poles?”

“Ugh, you know we can’t understand half the words you say, Rich,” Fuel said, hands on his hips. 

“Yeah, why are you even out here? Just get lost or something.”

“Fine, suit yourself,” she shrugged, rising to her feet. “Can’t be arsed to babysit fourteen year old toddlers.”

She headed towards and disappeared inside the bakery, much to the boy’s relief. Fuel rolled his eyes, then immediately smirked at Claus, who was wearing the same grin.

“First one to let go loses!” Fuel exclaimed.

And then they stuck their tongues to the pole. And since neither was willing to relent to the other, they were there for a long, long time.

An hour that felt like an entirety passed, but it didn't take long for the entire village to gather, much to the boy’s and their families’ embarrassment, and Richie’s visible-and audible-amusement. In a way, this was punishment enough, or at least Pusher thought so.

On the bright side, at least they wouldn’t have to shovel the snow anymore.


	5. Build

* * *

Claus kicked his feet in the air, the wind warm and clean as always. He laid down on the wooden platform and gazed up at the clouds; quietly, for once. It was rare that he was ever silent, and those moments, perhaps, were his favorite ones.

...No, they weren’t. He hated being alone. He had to share this with someone. He sat up as quickly as he laid down, and glanced over his shoulder at the recently built treehouse. Something a family would build, and Fuel was…

No, Fuel was family. It felt that way almost since the day Claus met him.

“…Here it is!” Fuel’s voice announced in the distance. “Pretty radical, huh Luke?”

“Uh, yeah, it is! You two built that yourself?”

“Yeah, we did!” Fuel said proudly. “…What’s with that face?!”

“I’m just surprised you two could actually build something that’s safe!”

“Oh, ha-ha.”

Fuel lead Lucas into view, causing Claus to sit up and wave at them. Lucas waved back warmly.

“Mom said to be home for dinner, Claus!” he yelled. “You know what time that is!”

“Yeah, I know!” Claus yelled back. 

“Are you coming up?” Fuel asked.

“Oh, no, I’m not falling for any of your pranks,” Lucas replied. “You two go have fun.”

“Aw, suit yourself.”

Fuel climbed up the ladder towards his friend, who laid back down in the sun. Fuel followed suit, lying down next to him. A few minutes of silence passed as the two friends savored the moment together.

“…Do you ever think about about the future?” Claus finally asked.

Fuel blinked. “Whaddya mean?”

“I-I mean,” Claus sighed, rolling onto his stomach. “I mean, do you think we’ll be friends forever?”

“What?” Fuel laughed, sitting up. He paused when he noticed Claus’s expression, and folded his arms. “Of course we will, what makes you think we won’t?”

“I dunno, maybe I’m just being weird…”

“Yeah, you are. I mean, come on, bro, who else am I gonna be friends with?”

“Nichol or Angie, or someone!”

“You’re kidding.”

“I’m just worried, bro, but you’re right…”

“Course I am. We’ll be friends forever, alright?”

The two fell silent as the breeze rolled over them. 

“I should probably get home before my mom chews me out,” Claus finally sighed. “I’ll see you tomorrow, bro.”

“Yeah,” Fuel nodded, watching his friend descend the ladder. “Yeah…”

“See you tomorrow,” Fuel breathed, turning away from the 3 year old treehouse. At this point, he’d be lucky seeing him again at all.


	6. Husky

* * *

“Fuel, when you asked me to sneak out to the forest like this, I didn’t think we’d be walking in circles.”

“I know where I’m going!”

The two paused for a moment as Claus watched Fuel bury his face in the map, clearly confused. 

“The map’s upside down, bro.”

Fuel moved his head back and gazed at the map for a second, before turning it right side up. 

“Uh, right,” he said sheepishly. “I knew that.”

Claus sighed, stuffing his hands in his pockets. “What are we even looking for again?”

“Oh, the giant huskies that lives near Mt. Oriander. My Dad said he saw it yesterday!”

“Fuel, that’s a stupid story our parents tell us to make us stay  _ out _ of the forest! There are no giant huskies!” 

“No, no, this time is different, bro, I swear!” Fuel exclaimed, rolling up the map. “I’ve never seen my Dad look so shocked! He was panting and everything, too, like he was running from something!”

“Your Dad was just pranking you! You’re so stupid, Fuel, no wonder you’d fall for that!”

“ _ I’m  _ stupid?! What about that time when your Dad told you about the goblins that eat little kids that don’t listen to their parents?! You couldn’t sleep for a month!”

“I was  _ six! _ ”

“Well I’m nine, so there’s no way I’d fall for something that wasn’t true!”

“You’re just… so  _ stupid _ , Fuel!” Claus shot, throwing his arms to the side in frustration. “I’m going home, and there’s nothing you can do to stop me!”

“Fine! Go home, then,” Fuel fired back, folding his arms. “Since you’re such a chicken…?”

His words trailed off, and his eyes practically shrunk. Claus blinked as Fuel’s face turned pale, like he had seen a ghost.

“H-Hey, Fuel?” Claus whispered tenderly. “What’s up? I was just joking, I-I’m not gonna leave!”

Fuel raises a finger to point behind his friend. “L-L-Look!” he managed to sputter.

Claus felt a shiver down his spine, what could possibly be behind him? He gulped and turned around, slowly and hesitantly, to face whatever had Fuel so shook.

And there, right in the opening, were two giant huskies, staring at the pair with sharp gazes. Claus immediately shrieked and grabbed onto Fuel, who did the same as the huskies began to approach.

Claus’s grip tightened “H-Hold me, bro!”

“I’m holding, I’m holding!”

The huskies loomed over the pair of bros for a moment, before kneeling down and sniffing them. They began to pant excitedly, their tongues sticking out in the air.

“They’re gonna eat us!” Claus whimpered, shutting his eyes.

“Hey, no man, look! They’re rolling over!”

“Huh?” Claus glanced at the huskies, who, sure enough, were rolled onto their backs, clearly expecting a belly rub. Fuel picked up on this quickly, and immediately ran over to one, laying his hands on the husky.

Fuel beamed at his bestie. “Come on, bro, they’re really nice!”

Claus approached the other husky, and something in him clicked. He began rubbing the husky in the same way he’d do Boney, which the husky enjoyed a lot. 

“Hey, bro,” Fuel finally said, staring at Claus along with the huskies.

“What?” 

“You should wake up now.”

“Wh—“

* * *

“Wake up, Claus!” Fuel’s voice called, accompanied by a shaking sensation.

Claus sat up, groggy and confused. “Whuh…?”

Fuel pointed towards the stairs. “You overslept, man, your mom’s here for you, bro!”

Claus leapt out of bed. “Oh, uh, shit!”

Fuel went downstairs as Claus began to get dressed. He was a bit disappointed that the giant huskies were just a dream, but he couldn’t let himself be distracted by that now. He dashed downstairs, waved goodbye to Lighter, and left Fuel’s cabin, only to be greeted by a giant red husky standing next to Fuel. 

“Hey, Hinawa!” he said, smiling at the husky. “Geez, did you do your hair or something? You look great!”

The giant dog nodded, before noticing Claus standing there in shock. “Hello sweetie,” the husky spoke in a gruff voice. “It’s time to go home!”

Claus screamed at the top of his lungs as he sat up in bed. 


	7. Enchanted

* * *

“So why are we risking our lives walking on the train tracks again?”

“We’re almost there, dude,” Fuel pointed, stepping out of the dark tunnel. “There’s a butterfly colony up ahead!”

“ _ Butterflies _ ?” Claus repeated, stopping short just as he entered the light. “Fuel, I don’t wanna mess around with butterflies!”

“Aw, come on, you big baby, Viola said magic butterflies help with PSI!”

Claus frowned and crossed his arms. He knew that. There just was something weird about having to play with butterflies for PSI training. The hot springs he could understand, but how were butterflies supposed to help?

Claus watched Fuel rush off to the north, groups of butterflies scattering as he did so. He had to admit that something about this place felt important, magical even. Like it could be a great start of an adventure, or something. 

“Claus, stop standing over there!” Fuel called with a wave. “Hurry up!”

Claus sighed and walked over to him, taking a quick glance around.

“Nice job scaring off all the butterflies, bro.”

Fuel laughed. “They’ll come back! Watch.”

Claus rolled his eyes, but no sooner than he did that did a pair of butterflies descend from the air, a pair that quickly took a shine to Claus, much to his dismay. They settled on his hair quickly, causing him to frown.

“Great,” he grumbled, grateful that nobody was watching.

Fuel snickered, before noticing a group of butterflies approaching him. One of them settled on his finger, and instantly inspired a sense of curiosity in him. He lifted his finger, slowly, looking at the butterfly’s pink-yellow wings that glistened in the sun. Something about these butterflies were… relaxing, enchanting even.

“Look, Claus, aren’t they radical?” Fuel finally said. When he received no reply he turned in his friend’s direction. “Claus?”

A swarm of butterflies had already found its way to the redhead, who had tripped and fallen onto his behind, an exhausted frown on his face. Fuel stifled a laugh, putting his free hand in his pocket.

“I think they like you, bro.”

“Shut up…”


	8. Frail

* * *

Fuel picked at his food a bit before sighing and gazing out the window. He would have gotten up fully to leave if Claus hadn’t barged in suddenly.

“Hey, Fuel!” he grinned, before noticing Fuel’s frown. “Bro, what’s up?”

“Richie best me at arm wrestling. Again.”

Claus laughed. “What, that’s all? Come on, man, just work out or something!”

“I  _ have _ !” Fuel complained, throwing his hand up. “She’s stupidly strong or whatever! I haven’t been able to beat her since we were ten!”

“Bro, you really let yourself go when i was gone, huh?”

“Oh, shut up,” Fuel grumbled. “I’m still stronger than you.”

“Oh, yeah? Have you noticed the metal arm, bro? I don’t think you can beat me now.”

“Wanna bet?”

Claus grinned. “Yeah, I wanna bet!”

“Then let’s go!”

“You’re on, bro,” Claus said as he sat down and offered his arm. “But don’t get all sad when you los-“

Fuel immediately took hold of the metallic limb and pulled, while Claus was still taunting, causing a resounding snap as the arm began to bend. By the time both parties knew what was about to happen, Fuel had already brought down his arm-and torn off Claus’s in the process. Fuel and Claus’s jaws dropped as they stared at the severed limb.

“Oh shit.”

Claus’s face turned beet red. “What the FUCK, dude?! I wasn’t ready!”

“Aw geez,” Fuel said, getting up and holding his head.

“DUDE! MY ARM!” Claus’s voice cracked. YOU ASSHOLE!”

“AW FUCK, AW CRAP!”

“WHAT AM I GONNA TELL LUCAS?!”

“FUCKING HELL, BRO!”

For a good, solid minute their treehouse was filled with the sounds of them shouting at each other with swears and complaints, but that was to be explained. Bros would be bros, of course.


	9. Swing

* * *

Fuel gave his friend a stern look. “Dude, did you tie these things up properly?”

Claus blinked at him for a moment, then directed his gaze back towards the knots of rope he tied. They weren’t the best, sure, but they looked good enough for him! Claus approached the tree that hoisted up the treehouse—and now, the newly installed swings, and hit the trunk with the back of his hand confidently.

“‘Course, bro, who do ya take me for?” Claus asked with a smile. “I take safety  _ very  _ seriously!”

Claus valuing safety? That’s rich.“Yeah, right,” Fuel said, rolling his eyes.

“Quit worrying so much, it’s not like we’re gonna fall or anything!”

And he plopped himself down on one of the swings, gripping the ropes excitedly. Fuel sighed and unfolded his arms, following suit moments later. Claus immediately began swinging, but Fuel took it slow. It was rare for him to get anxious over things, but when he did it was a stubborn feeling, and one that refused to go away easily. And for someone like Claus, it was obvious—and frustrating—when he was feeling anxiety.

“C’mon, bro,” Claus called. “Watch how fast I can go!”

“Bro, I really don’t think you should do that—“

“Hey, I’m not a chicken like you! You’re just a big chicken, huh, Fuel? BAWK BAWK BAWK!”

“You’re gonna fall, bro!”

“Ugh, you sound like my mom!” Claus groaned, still picking up speed. “Nothing’s gonna happen—“

Snap went one of the ropes, abandoning Claus to a hasty fall and a quick end to his fun. Fuel frowned and narrowed his eyes as Claus hit the ground and began to groan. Loudly. 

“Told you so.”

“Ow…”


	10. Pattern

* * *

“Thanks for helping me fold my shirts, Fuel!”

Fuel grumbled as he folded one of Claus’s striped shirts half-heartedly, tossing it aside into a pile where it probably would get wrinkled up all over again. He sighed as he glanced back towards the laundry bin, which still had about ten other shirts inside.

Fuel frowned as he lifted up a green and yellow striped shirt.  _ He never even wore these before…  _

How many shirts could one guy have? None of them even looked like they’d fit anymore.

“Why’d you wait until now to do all of this?”

“Uh, well I’ve kinda been dead for three years, bro.”

“Don’t pull that card, Claus, you could’ve done this ages ago!”

“Hey, I’m lazy! Look, I just need to figure out what shirts I can keep! Mom made so many extras…”

“Bro, none of these are gonna fit,” Fuel sighed. “These are baby clothes.”

“Geez, let’s just see, Fuel! You’re the one who wanted me to hurry up!”

Fuel didn’t respond. Claus lifted up a shirt and eyed it a bit before folding it up.

“If you don’t wanna hell you don’t have to stay, Fuel,” he sighed, placing the shirt away. “…Fuel?”

Claus finally noticed Fuel staring at a black and grey shirt, practically frozen and shivering. He was as pale as a ghost, and completely silent.

“Fuel?” Claus whispered tenderly. He walked over to him. “What’s up, dude?”

And then he saw it; there, on the shirt, a picture of a masked man. Claus blinked awkwardly.

“Oh. That’s, uh… how’d that get in there?”

“M-Meep…” Fuel choked.


	11. Snow

* * *

Snow in Tazmily was rare, even during winter, and it was rarer still that it lasted without melting within days. It was Claus’s first snow day since his return, and Fuel was determined to make it memorable. 

Yet their snowball fight had been cut short when Fuel threw one into Bronson’s house and ruined one of his projects, and so they sat outside the bakery, bored, hot chocolate in their hands. 

“Ugh, it’s freezing out here,” Fuel complained. “And it’s so quiet!”

“Yeah, everyone’s inside. It’s kinda nice to relax though…”

Claus took a sip of his cocoa. Fuel stared at him for a bit, before leaping to his feet.

“Wanna go build some snowmen?”

“Heh, what?” Claus smirked. “What are ya, two or something?”

Fuel rolled his eyes. “Do you want to or not, bro?”

Claus sighed, sliding onto his feet. “…Yeah.. Let’s do it, bro.”

* * *

The two had made their way to the crossroads, and decided to build their snowmen near the train tracks. They decided to build one of each other, and it quickly became a silent competition to see who could finish faster.

“Gee carrot top,” Fuel smirked. “It was nice of you to let us use your fellow carrots for our snowmen.”

“Bro, shut up, that’s such a dumb nickname.”

“Well, it’s accurate! What else am I supposed to think about you having orange hair?”

Claus ignored him, focusing on putting the finishing touches on his Fuel snowman. For once he wanted to show his bro something cool he made, to make it up for the years they missed. 

“Hey, Fuel, look at my snowman!”

Claus beamed proudly at Fuel, his snowman glistening in the sun. Several branches were stuck in his head to give him a vague Fuel-like appearance. It was rather impressive given what Claus was working with.

“Alright bro, here’s you!”

Fuel gestured towards the ugliest snowman on the planet, a carrot stuck in its head, leaving it noseless and rather unappealing.

Claus’s eye twitched as Fuel starting laughing.

“I think I really got your looks down!”


	12. Dragon

* * *

My name is Fuel. And I’m here to say… I’m here to say that… 

Dreams are a weird thing.

Just a few days ago I had a dream; a Drago came after me, hunted me down. I was in Claus’s house, for some reason, but it still came to me. It lumbered through Tazmily and stomped on everyone in the way. I tried to get a knife to protect me, but I couldn’t stop it. And I watched it reach down and bite Claus. He tried to protect me and got a fang pierced through his heart as thanks. It was a weird dream. 

Dreams are a bad thing.

The day after that dream, I had another one. I was laying face down, somewhere rocky. I could barely move, and every bone in my body ached. It felt like I was bit by a Drago, that I rolled down a cliff and practically died. I don’t know how anyone could survive that, much less me. I managed to move my body enough to see Claus face planted in the dirt nearby. He wasn’t moving, but the scary pig-headed guys didn’t seem to care. They didn’t seem to care about me; they just took Claus away. I couldn’t do anything about it except watch them take my bro away. Forever. It was a bad dream.

Dreams are cold things.

The day after that, I had a dream; I was somewhere cold, my entire body was cold. I hated it, I hate the cold. There was no warmth or heat, no fires, nothing. I was on a cold table strapped down with cold ropes. I don’t know what they were; they had to be ropes. Weird ropes, but ropes either way. There were people around, but they had cold, blank stares. They poked me with cold objects and stuck me with cold knives. At least, I think they were knives. They hurt like knives, stabbed like knives. They were cold… and I was shivering. My arm… it wasn’t my arm anymore. It was cold, a cold silver thing. It was freezing. 

Dreams are a dark thing.

I was back in that place again the next night. Although there were lights, I could barely see. My eyes could barely keep themselves open, and the old, white-haired guy was frustrated about it. He worked harder, and I could hear him begging me to stay with him. He was desperate, like something depended on me. I tried to stay awake, but I couldn’t. My eyes finally shut, and my body-or whatever was left of it felt relieved. I would finally be free. But I didn’t drift off, I was stuck in that dark place, some weird void. And there were streaks of red and gray. And that was all I saw until I woke up.

Dreams are a lonely thing.

I used to share these things with my bro. I used to share dreams with him, just like how I shared everything else with him. We did everything together, and I would sometimes get annoyed that he’s even sharing my dreams. But now I realize how lonely dreams are. All of my dreams after that cold place were just that dark void, and I sat alone in the void. I was curled up, trying to maintain what warmth I had. 

I guess I wasn’t really alone. There was someone else there. A boy, I think. Probably. He had a mask on, I saw it. But he wouldn’t look at me. I stared at the masked boy, I couldn’t look away. I don’t think he knew I was there. Or maybe he did. He kept calling out for someone. Sometimes it was his mom. Sometimes it was his dad. Other times it was… me. I could hear him whisper my name, and each time he said it he would grow louder, more desperate. Even though he searched, he never faced my direction. He got close to turning around, but he’d never face me. He called out my name but I’d never answer. I didn’t know him, so I couldn’t. Dad told me not to talk to strangers. I simply covered my ears, because the louder he called my name the more it sounded like Claus. The more I had to drown it out.

Maybe he was lonely too.

Dreams are a quiet thing.

Since my 11th birthday I don’t have anymore dreams of that boy, or the void, or even the Dragos. I have normal dreams now. Quiet dreams. My bro no longer shares them with me… and my Dad told me that’s because he’s sleeping now. He can just say he’s dead, he doesn’t have to dumb it down. I know Claus is dead. My best friend is dead. I knew it ever since he went off to Oriander. I felt my heart sink that day, I remember the time exactly. It was just around noon when I had that sinking feeling. I didn’t want to admit it, but somehow I knew he was gone. And Tazmily was quiet for a while. I was quiet for a while. My dreams were quiet for a while.

Dreams are a quiet thing.

My name is Fuel, and I’m here to ask…

Dark Dragon, if you’re real, can’t you bring Claus back?


	13. Ash

* * *

“Fuel, this isn’t gonna work.”

Fuel stopped what he was doing and frowned at Claus. “Whaddya mean? That we can’t make homemade smoke bombs?”

“No, I’m saying we can’t use soot dumplings and a match to do it! It’ll blow up in our faces or something!”

“Aw, you’re just a party pooper. If Richie can do this so can I!”

“Richie’s actually trained for this, though, you’re just waving a match around!”

Fuel waved the burning match at Claus. “No I’m not! This is some next level skill, bro, so shut fuck and watch me work!”

Claus took a step back as Fuel finished hollowing out a soot dumpling. He placed it on the ground near several other balls of soot, and stepped back towards the end of a long fuse line connected to the pile. He lit it with his match excitedly, blowing it out as the fuse began to burn.

Fuel balled up his fists in excitement, excitement that wasn’t exactly shared by Claus. He stepped back in anticipation of this going horribly wrong, which it probably would.

“This is gonna be good!” Fuel grinned.

Claus frowned as the fire approached the stacks of soot. “Yeah…”

The fuse finally ended, the fire slipping inside the hollowed out soot ball. Smoke began to filter out of it, with more and more spouts forming by the minute. It sizzled and hissed for a moment, before falling silent altogether. Fuel blinked, his muscles relaxing as he adopted a puzzled face.

“Aw man, what gives?”

The two stepped forward, glancing down at the inert stack. Claus shrugged at his friend. “At least it didn’t blow up, huh bro?”

But Fuel has already knelt down and lit about seven other matches. Claus’s jaw dropped as Fuel began to toss them into the stack of soot angrily.

“Fuel, you dumbass, stop!”

Too late. The clumps of soot immediately hissed at the storm of fire being introduced, and reacted poorly—and violently. Before the two knew what was happening, the stack of soot burst from pressure; right in the faces of the two boys. They coughed and waved their hands, desperately trying to get rid of the smoke and ash. By the time the area cleared up, they were both covered head to toe in soot, which wasn’t exactly something new to Fuel. 

The two glanced at each other; Fiel adopting a sheepish grin and Claus a frustrated glare. He folded his arms angrily.

“Good job, smart one.”

Fuel rubbed the back of his head. “Haha… uh, my bad. Didn’t think that would happen…”

“You threw like _eight_ matches into a pile of soot, what did you think was gonna happen?!”

“I dunno!” Fuel replied with a shrug, before adopting a confident grin. “You gotta admit that was pretty cool though, bro.”

“Ugh, you’re such an idiot. I’m going home!”

“Aw, don’t be such a stick in the mud! “ Fuel complained, watching him leave. “Come on, Claus! Wait up!”


	14. Overgrown

* * *

“Oh, boy, emotional trauma cave!” Fuel announced excitedly as his torch’s flame lit up the dark, depressing cave that once housed the final needle. He glanced, completely unamused as Claus brushed past him, dusting off his father’s hat as he put it on. “Bro, can’t we explore something, y’know, less… depressing?” 

“Uh… that’s the point?” Claus said, tilting his dad’s hat like a real motherfucker, “You gotta face your demons before you can like… be maximum strong. Or something. You know how it is bro.”

“No, I fucking  _ don’t _ . This isn’t some game, Claus, this is just…” he trailed off for a moment, gesturing with his free hand at the cave. “Stupid!” 

“If by stupid, you mean brave, then yeah! This is real stupid! Plus, we’re already this far. What, you gonna chicken out already? You gonna run away like a real coward, bro?” Claus started making chicken noises, bawking at him like a real douche.

Oddly enough, Fuel barely got worked up. He just shook his head wearily at Claus and muttered, “You know, bro, I kinda hoped you’d have learned the difference between being brave and  _ throwing your life away _ .” 

Claus threw his hands up, “Oh  _ come ON!  _ There’s like nothing in this cave! Nothing’s gonna hurt us! Seriously, the most deadly thing in this cave is  _ me,  _ bro, man the fuck up.”

Fuel stared at him for a bit, trying to communicate silently but realizing it was useless. “Whatever. Don’t say I didn’t tell you so when you get flashbacks or whatever PTSD shit you get down here,” he sighed. 

Claus shook his head, “You seriously think this cave bothers me bro? It’s not like we’re at the Chimera Lab or anything, I know my limits. You can just admit when you’re a coward bro,” he said, moving forward, ahead of his bro.

“This is where you  _ died! _ ” Fuel shot, throwing his arm to the side. “Did you just forget about that?!”

Claus looked back at his bro, “You know, dying isn’t really that special when you do it a bunch of times. I’m probably immortal or something anyway, ‘specially 'cause I can just get rebuilt most of the time now. Death really doesn’t mean anything to me anymore to be honest.” Claus shrugged as he moved onwards.

Fuel clenched his fists. “Death doesn’t  _ mean  _ anything to you?” Fuel glanced off to the side angrily. “…So you just wouldn’t care if Lucas died, then? …You just wouldn’t care if  _ I  _ died, is that what you mean? Do you just not care anymore?” 

“Wh-  _ bro.”  _ Claus pinched the bridge of his nose. “Obviously I’d care if you died! If you die, you ain’t comin’ back! But that’s not the way it is with me. It seems like no matter how much I die, I can always come back. I might lose an arm or something, but you know. That’s just what I gotta pay to come back and all.” Claus shook his head, “Anyway, enough stalling! Let’s get going already!”

_ He just doesn’t get it _ , Fuel thought, following after Claus reluctantly.  _ He’s never gonna get it.  _

The bros trekked their way into the cave, with Claus leading them further in and Fuel following reluctantly. “You know, I never really got a good look at this cave last time I was here,” Claus said, trying to make light of their venture, “It’s actually really pretty in here, with all the glowing purple ‘n stuff. Looks neat-” Claus paused as he went silent in an instant, his gaze now locked onto a large round object in the middle of their path.

“Geez, that’s a pretty huge nut, bro!” Fuel said, slapping Claus on the back and waving his torch at it.

“Ye...yeah bro. Pretty… big…” Claus said, refusing to lose his sight on the object. His body felt like it had frozen in place, and despite how he tried yelling at himself to move, his body refused to move.

It didn’t take long for Fuel to notice the shift in body language, and it took every ounce of self-control to not scream “I told you so.” He stared at Claus for a moment, basking in his stupidity before grabbing hold of his arm and plopping the torch in his bro’s hand. He practically skipped over to the large object, metallic in nature, slapping it with the back of his hand. “Pretty big nut, right here!”

Claus felt all of his nerves flare up in an instantly, “Bro, what are you doing?! Get back here!” 

“What’s the matter, bro? I thought you said you didn’t care about death anymore, huh?” Fuel said, banging on the object again. “There ain’t nothin’ dangerous down here, that’s what you said, isn’t it?!”

Claus gulped, “But that’s… that’s…”

Fuel was really getting into it now. He leaned forward, a huge, shit-eating grin on his face. “Oh, what’s the matter, the big bad Claus who doesn’t fear  _ anything _ is scared of a big metal tin can, who fucking knew! You’re such a two-faced dumbass, Claus, you know that?! Like, why the fuck do I even put up with you?!” 

“Shut UP!” Claus yelled, lashing out at Fuel, “You have no idea what’s going on, so just shut your damn mouth! You don’t know anything!”

“And  _ you  _ do? Gee, we got a fucking genius over here!” Fuel shot back, throwing his hands up. “Like,  _ I  _ don’t know anything? That’s a real fucking riot coming from the idiot who thought it’d be a damn good idea to fight a fucking  _ dinosaur _ with a  _ kitchen KNIFE! _ ”

Claus’s body shivered with anger as he balled up his fists, “That’s a lot of hot shit from you, Mr. “I can’t be assed to move my lazy ass to do a damn thing while my bro is being TORTURED AND ENSLAVED” you fucking bitch!”

“That’s your own damn fault, Claus! How the FUCK was I supposed to know all of this shit was going down?! You think a ten year old kid is gonna be able to ride in to fucking creep-central and save your stupid-ass?! Is that what you were hoping for Claus?! Well, news flash, you fucking idiot, life isn’t like the stupid ass stories you got told before bedtime! There’s no tooth fairy, there’s no easter bunny, there’s no fucking hero with a sword coming to save you from your mistakes, there’s just you and your stupid fucking actions! And I think it’s real fucking unfair that you’re just allowed to come back to life like this and just prance around like nothing happened when you fucking DIED  _ TWICE! _ FUCKING act like you learned SOMETHING!”

“You know what? Fine!” Claus threw his hands up, “It doesn’t matter that everyone sat on their ass while I suffered, hell, it doesn’t matter that I went and got myself killed. It just, doesn’t. Matter. You know why? You know why, Fuel? It’s ‘cause it was gonna happen no matter what. If I hadn’t been a dumbass, they would’ve probably just kidnapped me, or hell, even Lucas and just forced us that way. It doesn’t matter what happened ‘cause the result would just be the same. But, oh! Don’t take my word for it! Why don’t you ask  _ his majesty,  _ who’s kindly sitting RIGHT HERE about how I had no fucking chance of living a normal life, no matter how smart my ten year old ass was.” Claus pointed directly at the capsule, “Go right ahead bro! He’s right there, ready to listen!”

Fuel raised a brow. “What are you-”

“Oh, I hope I’m not interrupting something,” a withering voice croaked. “This is  _ extremely _ amusing to watch, so please do continue.”

Claus glared at the capsule before looking back at his bro, “You know what? I changed my mind. There’s nothing of value down here after all. Let’s go back home and reminisce over how I’m a piece of shit who doesn’t care about anyone back there, or whatever the fuck we’re doing down here.”

Fuel folded his arms. “Bro, don’t even try to pull the victim card.”

“Yes, do tell him… Fuel, was it? Certainly not the name  _ I  _ would’ve chosen, but regardless…” the voice paused for a moment in order to cough. Loudly. “Ah… regardless… I sense a lot of  _ tension _ between you two right now. Am I correct?” 

“Bro, we should go. The last thing we need to be doing is giving this sad sack a show when he should be rotting in hell,” Claus said very edgily.

The man in the capsule immediately took on a pained, sorrowful expression. “Oh! Now, is that any way to treat an old friend, Claus?”

Fuel turned to look at the dreary old man, before turning back to Claus. “Uh, is anyone gonna tell me what’s going on?” 

“Yes, I’ve been rude. Allow me to introduce myself… I am your royal majesty, King Porky, at your… “service.” 

“Oh, so we’re introducing ourselves now? Neat. The bane of my existence, meet the  _ other  _ bane of my existence,” Claus feigned a friendly tone before he dropped into a deadpan. “Okay we’re done here, let’s go.”

Fuel didn’t budge. He just shook his head angrily at Claus. Porky laughed, before quickly transitioning into a painful cough. “Oho, oh my, you certainly were better when you were a slave, boy. I should’ve ordered that tongue of yours cut off.” 

“Should’ve, could’ve, would’ve, but you  _ didn’t.  _ And now you’re stuck there. Stuck listening to me. Just as I was stuck listening to  _ you  _ for years. But whatever. I don’t want anything to do with you anyway.” Claus firmly looked at Fuel and gestured his head towards the entrance of the cave, “Let’s go bro, there’s nothing to do here. Unless you count entertaining a senile old asshat as quality entertainment, bro.”

“What your “bro” wants is someone with an actual brain, it appears,” Porky mused, before chuckling. “Or perhaps he just wants someone who learns from their mistakes, as I have. I achieved all that I did through perfection. You have achieved… mmm… nothing.”

“Wait a second,  _ you’re  _ Porky,” Fuel realized, before facepalming. “Christ, I’m surrounded by  _ two  _ assholes!” 

“You know, there’s a very quick and easy way to only have to deal with one asshole and it’s by leaving.  _ NOW.” _

“Maybe I don’t want to deal with  _ any  _ assholes, Claus,” Fuel shot, turning towards him. “I hate Porky’s guts but you’re also driving me up a wall, here. Like, when the hell are  _ you  _ gonna shape up?”

“Okay bro, sure. Let me just get over all of my trauma using a magic spell, and oh! I’ll go ahead and remedy the dumbass mistakes that I made when I was ten by going back in time by talking to the magical time wizard, so that I can successfully avert the future’s events like some dumb anime protagonist. Is that what you want bro? You want a miracle cure? You want me to just  _ get over it?  _ Hate to break it to you bro, but welcome to reality! It’s not gonna happen, I’m gonna be a stupid asshole for the rest of my life, and I guess you’re just gonna have to suffer with that.”

“This is all just some big joke to you, huh?” Fuel sighed. “You  _ know  _ what I want, I want you to promise me you won’t do all this stupid, dangerous shit anymore! You  _ know  _ that!” 

Claus’s voice lowered, “Why make a promise I’ll never keep?”

“Because if you really cared you’d at least try.”

Claus grew silent and crossed his arms. He gazed to the side and shrugged, “You know you don’t have to deal with me, Fuel. It’s your choice, after all.”

“Yes, why deal with such a ball of self-loathing and potential world-destroying capabilities?” Porky asked, feigning interest. “You’ve tried your best, you two, truly, it’s a miracle this friendship has gotten so far! But, do take it from me; friendships never last.”

“Shut up, pizza roll,” Fuel shot. “I-”

“Make your choice, Fuel. Surely you see your… efforts aren’t being well-received. Redheads are such handfuls anyway.”

Claus gripped the fabric of his jacket as he turned his glare towards Porky and growled, “You shut your damn mouth. You have no place to talk shit when you’re here, in the bottom of miserable cave, rotting alone. I know I’m not great, but you’re as low as they go  _ your majesty. _ ”

Fuel frowned and sat down, taking off his backpack and rummaging through it. Porky coughed a bit, before sighing. “Ungratefulness is the mark of a fool; do not bite the hand that feeds as the saying goes. To have saved your life and be met with this… typical. It’s a wonder that I made such a terrible decisio-”

“Yeah, well I’ve made my decision,” Fuel interjected, pulling out a spray can and immediately painting over the window on the capsule. “I think I’m gonna barf if I keep looking at your face, sooo I’m just gonna do a little redecorating!” 

Claus just blinked at his bro’s actions. Every part of his body felt attacked by Fuel’s vandalizing (as it was conditioned to feel), but in his heart, he was cheering on his bro.

And so, he followed his heart, “Bro, gimme a spray can, let’s draw a dick.” 

Fuel had already pulled out a second can, as if he knew his bro would say that. He tossed it towards Claus, “Knock yourself out, man!” as he continued spraying. “Let’s draw club tittyboob, bro!”

And so the bros spent the rest of their day creatively assaulting the Absolutely Safe Capsule. Of course its occupant tried so desperately to stir them up, but the power of juvenile dicksmanship had brought the bros together once again. At least they weren’t fighting anymore. 


	15. Legend

* * *

“Anyone have any stories?” Angie asked awkwardly. 

The fire crackled in response, mercifully preventing the woods from falling deathly silent. As late as everyone had stayed out, a night in the forest seemed less and less magical as one grew. Alle was practically half-asleep, despite her insisting she could stay up forever. Fuel and Claus sat together on a log across from Angie who sat next to Richie, who had been engaging Fuel in a staring contest for the last ten minutes.

Fuel broke contact to glance at Angie, blinking as he did so.

“Ha!” Richie exclaimed. “Looks like I win again, Fuel, ya numpty.”

“Win at what?” Fuel feigned, a puzzled look on his face. He dropped the act once he heard Richie groan. “Yeah, I got a story—“

Lucas smirked. “A  _ true _ story?”

“ _ A  _ story,” Fuel repeated. “It’s a good one, alright? It’s the legend of the Sunshine Killer, Jason Vorhees!”

There was silence as Fuel leaned in closer towards the flames. He adopted a deep and sinister tone, his expression becoming more serious.

“Twenty years ago, right here in this Village, a boy drowned in Cerulean Beach because nobody was watching him—“

The fire crackled as everyone listened in; everyone awake, anyway. Richie yawned, bored out of her mind already.

“And after that, all of the villagers started to die one by one,” Fuel continued, waving his fingers. “They were all murdered by the boy’s mother, uh, what’s her face… Pamela!”

Claus raised a brow. “ _ Pamela? _ What kind of name is that—“

“Sssh!” Fuel ordered. “Anyway, the rest of villagers cornered her in this very forest, and cut off her head to stop her before she killed everyone in the village! And now, to this day, Jason stalks these woods seeking revenge!”

Fuel grinned triumphantly as he finished, earning a facepalm from Lucas. Angie glanced at Richie, confused. Claus sighed, got up, and left the area.

“Uh, Fuel, didn’t Jason drown?” Angie questioned. “And wasn’t it just mom seeking revenge?”

“Gads, yer own story's contradictin’ itself,” Richie added. “Don’t ye think ya could try a wee bit harder?”

Lucas nodded silently in agreement. 

“Uh, wait, maybe I’m not telling it right…” Fuel mused, scratching the back of his head.

“Ya think?” Richie said. “I bet Nana over there could come up with somethin’ better in her sleep!”

“Well why don’t you come up with a story, since you’re so good at it!” Fuel shot.

Richie stood up. “Maybe I will!”

“Fine!” Fuel leapt to his feet. “I’ll go get Claus.”

The others watched him leave, vanishing off into the woods. Richie sat back down, stuffing her arms into her coat pockets. 

“This was such a stupid idea, who made us come out here anyways?”

“Who do you think?” Angie sighed. “I only came because I missed these little gatherings…”

“Aye, but those two are insufferable,” Richie grumbled. “It’s bloody baltic out here—where are those nitwits?”

“ _ Boo, _ ” a voice said from behind. Behind the two girls were a pair of t-posing legends, menacing in the darkness. 

Angie and Richie immediately jumped into the air, with Richie turning around quickly and slamming a foot into the person behind her… or persons. Both of them fell down onto the ground with a resounding thud, and a pained groan for good measure.

Richie blinked as she allowed the light of the campfire to shine on her victims, both of whom oddly resembled Fuel and Claus but in hockey masks.

“Oh my god,” Angie muttered. “I think they’re dead, Rich.”

Lucas stepped up behind the girls, silent but with a knowing expression on his face. Richie put her hands on her hips.

“Well, that’s what they get for sneakin’ up on a lady like that.”

“What… lady…?” Fuel managed to sputter.

“Hey, they’re alive,” Lucas sighed.

Richie rolled up a sleeve. “Let’s fix that!”

* * *


	16. Wild

* * *

“Ugh, it’s freezing out here!” Claus complained, shivering a bit. “Whose idea was this?!”

“Yours,” Fuel muttered, rolling his eyes. He glanced up at the stars, a bit annoyed by Claus’s constant huddling up to him for warmth. Like, of course it’d be cold, not only is it night out, but they’re in shirts and shorts! 

“Bro, you can’t even handle your own fucking dare,” Fuel said, shoving Claus. “You know we both hate the cold!”

Claus shook his head as he shivered but he held firm to his stance, “Ah whatever, if you’re too chicken to follow through, then you can head home if you want bro,” he glanced at Fuel, “‘course, Richie’s gonna know all about it tomorrow though, so. You know.”

“Ass,” Fuel grumbled, glancing down at the unlit logs, left over from a previous outing in the forest. He thought for a moment before grinning, and knelt down, rubbing his hands together before igniting them in the orange flames of his PSI. He lit up the campfire gleefully, allow the warmth to envelop him. “Oh, that’s good.” 

The fire grew larger as Claus sat right next to it. He watched the flames dance throughout the air, disappearing into flecks of amber. Feeling the much needed heat on his face, he was positively beaming, so he leaned forward to get even warmer. It was all great until he felt a searing pain on his nose, causing him to yelp and jerk back. 

Fuel stifled a laugh. “Nice going, bro, don’t you think you should stay _away_ from a raging fire, man?” He barely had time to turn around when the fire leapt out at him, forcing him to back away quickly. The fire raged a bit, wild and untamed. Fuel sweated a bit, glancing down at his open palms. Maybe he went overboard with the PSI. 

“Jeez bro, you think it’s burning enough?” Claus sneered, “Still, it feels really nice. Since we gotta be out here in our t-shirts and shorts and all. You think it’d be overkill to have another one of these?”

“Y-You want _another_ fire?” Fuel questioned, bewildered for a moment. Of course, every ounce of impulsivity in him immediately took over, and he shook his head quickly. “I-I mean, yeah, sure, I just need some more firewood, bro!” 

A large grin grew over Claus’s face as he went over to a nearby tree. He took out his lightning sword and chopped down the tree in a clean swipe. However, he didn’t consider where the tree would land, and before he knew it, the tree began careening towards him.

Fuel glanced over as the tree cracked and groaned, gravity pulling it towards his friend. Well, it was nice to see that Claus hadn’t changed a bit. Of course, neither had Fuel, and his stubborn ass certainly wasn’t about to let his bro die for a second-or was it a third time? He had lost count at this point!

“ _Claus, look out!_ ” Fuel screamed, throwing his hands up in the air. Something within him awoke, and before either of the two knew it, the tree had collapsed upon an semi-visible, orange barrier, made out of hexagons. It crackled as it propped up the tree, shielding Claus from it. 

Claus looked up, noticing how Fuel was struggling to hold of the tree. Not realizing what had just happened, he grinned, seeing this as a great opportunity to chop the wood. He swung his sword several times like a degenerate anime swordsman and within seconds, the tree had become firewood.

“Thanks bro!” Claus said, giving him a thumbs up.

Fuel had half a mind to kill him for a fourth time, but he beat back those thoughts. He just gave an awkward smile and relaxed, causing the barrier to vanish. Whatever that was, it sure was cool. 

Claus squatted, “Bro, what are you waiting for? Go ahead and light ‘em up!” He pointed at the several logs laid about the ground in random assortments.

Fuel sighed as he moved two logs towards him. “You have to arrange them in a certain way, bro, don’t you know how to start a fire?” Once Fuel was finished with one pair, he rubbed his hands together and started another fire, apparently forgetting not to make it as wild. It erupted in an intense blaze, earning a nod of approval from him. 

“Here, here, lemme try!” Claus tried mimicking Fuels’ movements by rubbing his hands together furiously, but nothing came of it. He looked at his hands with disappointment, “Uh, why is fire not happening? Am I not doing it hard enough?” 

Fuel shrugged. “You’re just not cool enough, bro, what can I say?”

“Oh well, starting fires is kinda lame for PSI anyway. Besides, who needs fire when you can just summon lightning whenever?” Claus looked at another tree, “Watch this bro,” he swung his arm in a strict formation and aimed it towards the tree. However, the lightning ended up hitting one of the fires that Fuel had started, causing flaming wood to scatter everywhere.

Fuel’s jaw dropped as the wood flew in every direction, landing on the foliage and trees around. The fire immediately spread, and before long Sunshine Forest was starting to look all too familiar to Fuel all too quickly. “Aw, shit,” Fuel muttered. “Aw _fuck!_ ”

Claus looked out towards the mayhem and chuckled awkwardly, “…Oops.”

~~Then they both died the end~~


	17. Ornament

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Since it's Christmas it'll fit better if I post out of order today a bit, here's the 17th prompt Ornament  
> This is also one of the works that was co-written by clausbook

* * *

The holidays in Tazmily were as quiet as always, and it’s something that hasn’t changed despite everything the Village went through. This Christmas was special, however. It would be the first Christmas without the Pigmasks, the first Christmas were everything would drift towards the old ways of the Village again.

And it was the first Christmas that the bros would share in a long time. 

“Claus, can’t you hold the tree steady?!” Fuel shouted down, clinging to the tree tightly. “You’re gonna kill me!”

“Maybe if you weren’t so weak, I wouldn’t have to carry most of it anyway!” Claus grunted, lifting the tree up to the treehouse.

“You’re a literal robot, of course you have to carry it!” Fuel explained, rolling his eyes. “Geez, you’re really messing it up, bro, be careful!”

Claus frowned at Fuel’s remark about being a robot, “Being a ‘robot’ doesn’t give me super strength, bro! God, put some muscle into it you baby!” He shifted the weight over to Fuel out of spite.

Fuel winced as the weight of the tree crashed onto him, grunting as he adapted quickly. Despite how much he wanted to throw it at Claus, he simply didn’t have the strength. He couldn’t even make some sarcastic remark considering how the wind was knocked out of him. 

Claus rolled his eyes, “Come on, bro! It’s not much longer!” He started climbing up the ladder, holding the top of the tree in tow, “You’ve got this, come on! Think of this like a workout, bro!”

“This is the worst workout I’ve ever had,” Fuel huffed, his face turning beet red. “Claus, pull  _ harder _ , you’re doing this on purpose!”

“Doing what on purpose?” Claus asked, suppressing his laughter. He tugged on the tree lightly, treading up the steps one at a time, “Just a little more-!”

“Claus, you bast—” Fuel began, before feeling something slip. His sweating hands gave way, and in that one instant the tree began to fall, immediately bashing Fuel in the face as it slipped out of Claus’s grip. Fuel let out a yelp as the tree knocked him all the way down to the ground, getting destroyed in the process. 

Claus looked down at the destruction, “Bro how the  _ fuck _ did that tree get destroyed instantly?” He jumped down the ladder and looked at all the scattered leaves and twigs, “Geez, this must have been a weak ass tree. That’s natural selection, for ya. Anyway, ya need a hand bro?” He extended his hand out for Fuel, who was just sitting on his ass under a now destroyed tree.

Fuel held his head in pain. “I think I broke something, bro.”

“Oh shit, I’ll get Lucas then, healing stuff is like the one thing he’s good at after all,” he said, “I’ll be right back bro.”

_ Lucas? _ What, so he can talk about how stupid they both were while healing him? Fuel reached after Claus in an attempt to stop him, but he was long gone. The fact that he decided to leave someone in pain aside, he wasn’t looking forward to getting chewed out. Again. Fuel looked at the destroyed remnants of the tree and frowned; he didn’t even get to put the ornaments on. 

Several minutes passed in what felt like an eternity, and Claus returned with a very unamused Lucas. “So let me get this straight,” Lucas started, “You two were trying to carry this,” he motioned at the destroyed tree, “up that tiny ladder by  _ yourselves _ ?”

Oblivious to Lucas’s tone, Claus shrugged, “Yeah, that was the plan.”

“God, I…” Lucas sighed, “Whatever. Can you at least take the tree off of him so I can heal… whatever it is he broke?”

“Oh, uh, yeah,” Claus yeeted the tree off Fuel, “You should’ve seen him Luc, he could barely carry this thing, but it’s so light!”

Lucas just deadpanned at Claus as he went to Fuel, “So what did you break?”

“My arm… I think,” Fuel laughed, an awkward sort of laugh. He sighed when he realized Lucas didn’t share his sense of humor. “Yeah, uh, now that you mention it, that plan had a really high uh… S.P.F.” 

Lucas was confused, “What’s S.P.F.?”

“Stupid Plan Factor,” Fuel grinned. 

“...Do you guys, like, rank your plans on the amount of stupid in them? Are you really self aware or- nevermind,” Lucas held Fuel’s arm carefully and healed his wound the best he could, “I don’t know if this will solve everything, but it should make it feel better. Still, you really shouldn’t be carrying anything heavy while it’s healing.”

Feeling better, Fuel immediately jumped up, and rubbed his arm gently. “Gee, thanks Lucas,” he said, before smirking. “Do you… think you could heal my BOFA too?”

“Your… bofa? What’s a bofa?”

“BOFA deez nuts!” Fuel exclaimed, reaching towards Claus for a high five, with his bad arm no less.

“Gottem!” Claus yelled, slamming his metal hand onto Fuel’s aching hand.

The pain immediately shot through Fuel’s body, and he collapsed on the ground screaming in agony. Claus stared down at him in sheer confusion, oblivious to the fact he just made the pain worse. 

Lucas just stared at the two of them, amazed as he thought about how both of them were alive right now, when they were both this fucking stupid. Figuring that he’s helped Fuel enough, Lucas said, “Don’t strain yourself. I’m out,” leaving Fuel writhing in the pain he caused himself and Claus wondering what the actual hell just happened.

“Wow,  _ rude.  _ He could’ve at least healed you again, bro.” He turned to Fuel, “Bro?”

Fuel screamed in response, considering he was STILL hurting.

“Bro it was just a high five, how are you in this much pain?!”

The pain became bearable after a few minutes of constant writhing, Fuel’s face beet red and his eyes tearing slightly. “Y-You’re gonna kill me one day, Claus, you  _ fuck _ !” 

“Kill you by giving you a high five?” Claus scoffed, “At that point you’d honestly deserve to die.” He held his metal hand out to his bro, “Anyway you wanna get up or do you plan to just sit here for the rest of the night?”

Fuel glared at the metallic arm, reluctantly grabbing onto it to be pulled up. He held his still-throbbing arm tenderly, sighing as he looked up at the sky. The sun was starting to set and they had no tree to speak of for Christmas, much to Fuel’s frustration. “Bro, we don’t even have a tree to celebrate Christmas,” he whined, genuinely upset. “We-er,  _ I  _ ruined your first Christmas back in Tazmily!” 

“Huh? You really think a tree is gonna make or break Christmas for me?” Claus crossed his arms, “You do realize I haven’t even been able to celebrate Christmas for the last few years, right? The fact that I’m here, and that I’m with you, celebrating Christmas again, is honestly more than I’d ever need bro.”

Fuel choked up a bit, still holding onto his arm. “B-Bro, I…” 

Claus grabbed a hold of his good arm and tugged him towards the treehouse, “Come on bro, let’s find something else to decorate. It doesn’t have to be a tree bro, we can like, catch a squirrel or something and torment it with ornaments,” he said, grinning.

Fuel perked up a bit. “It doesn’t have to be a tree, huh?” he said, getting another stupid idea.

“Yeah, bro. Why, you got something in mind?”

“Yeah, bro, I totally got something in mind.” 

* * *

Fuel placed the last ornament atop Claus’s head, attaching it to the weird tuft of his weird hair perfectly. He stepped back to admire his handiwork, nodding proudly at the decked out Claus, covered in multiple ornaments from his shirt to his shorts.

Claus shoved his hands in his pockets, trying not to let the ornaments hanging from his pockets fall, “You know, I don’t know what I did wrong, but I feel like I deserve this.”

“Hold still, bro,” Fuel complained. “I need to figure out where to put the star!” 


	18. Misfit

* * *

The day was bright as the bros pranced about with their new toy. It was a thief tool that Fuel had stolen to spite Richie: a worm on a string. The being was so magnificent that it had captured their complete attention. Claus swung it around as his bro watched in awe.

“Look at it squirm, bro,” Fuel grinned. “What the hell was Richie even planning to do with this thing?”

Claus shrugged, “I dunno bro, but I’ll tell you what! If she was gonna go fishing with this thing, it wouldn’t have caught a damn thing,” he said as he peered over at Lucas, “You know. Unlike Lucas. Who totally could have caught something if he wasn’t such a coward.”

Fuel didn’t reply. He just gazed over at Lucas for a moment before shrugging his shoulders. “I guess.” He couldn’t help but feel it was uncalled for, but whatever, siblings are siblings. 

Meanwhile, while the bros were having the time of their lives with a worm on a string, Lucas stayed silent as he sat with his knees up to his chest, sulking about. He had sacrificed so much and worked so hard to save the world, and for what? To be ostracized by Tazmily again? To be excluded from the bro meetings (breetings)? His chest felt heavy and he wanted to cry, as he thought about how much fun he could be having right now, if only the bros had accepted him.

Claus swung the stick, and the worm landed on Fuel’s face. Claus grinned as Fuel immediately began laughing, swatting at the string holding the worm. Lucas shrunk just a bit more as the laughter filled his ears. 

“Bro, get it off of me,” Fuel demanded, brushing it aside with every advance Claus made with it.

As the sound of laughter echoed throughout the air, Lucas balled up his fists and stood up. He was tired of being excluded, and even though he knew in his heart of hearts that he had always been a third wheel to the bros, he wanted to spend time with Claus too, time that had been so cruelly been torn away from him, just as was the case with Fuel. With a stern look on his face, he held back his tears and headed towards the bros.

As Lucas stormed over towards them, he failed to notice the rock in his path. His foot hit it and upset his balance, and down he went. A resounding thud interrupted the bros’ merriment as they cast their gazes at the downed Lucas. Fuel gave Claus a worried glance, but Claus merely rolled his eyes. 

“Hey Lucas,” Fuel called, holding up his hand. “You, uhhh, you alright?”

Claus shook his head, “He’ll be fine bro. He’s definitely dealt with worse than a couple scrapes, right Lucas?”

Lucas didn’t share that sentiment however, and just glared at the bros.

Fuel felt a bit awkward, as one does. Something about this whole situation felt like it was about to boil into a bit of a sibling fallout. Fuel elbowed Claus to get his attention, and gestured his head towards Lucas.

He brought his voice down to a whisper. “At least check on him, dude, he’s  _ your _ twin.”

Claus blinked, “Oh, uh, yeah.” He handed the worm on a string over to Fuel and went over to Lucas, who was still quiet and in a pissy mood. He noticed that his knee was scraped up a bit, but other than that, he was fine elsewhere, “Looks good to me bro!” Fuel gave an awkward thumbs up.

That wasn’t good enough for his twin. It was only a scrape, but it made his emotions boil over, seeing how his brother was disregarding him for his _ bro.  _ Lucas opened his mouth as if to say something, but like an overdramatic teenage girl, he fled into the house sobbing.

“Fuck,” Fuel muttered. He got to his feet. “Nice going, Claus, we’re gonna hear about it later!”

Claus rolled his eyes again, but this time with gusto, “Ah whatever bro. He’ll get over it.” He said those words without thinking. He looked back at the house and heard Lucas audibly cry, and he realized that Lucas wasn’t exactly a crybaby anymore, so this was technically unusual behavior for him. Still, he was a little peeved of having his worm time with his bro interrupted by him, “Give ‘im a few hours and he’ll be back to normal.” He then reached for the worm on a stick, “Come on bro, let’s not let him get us down, alright?”

Fuel paused for a moment to think. Something about this didn’t feel wrong, but then again it was a sibling thing, so he didn’t really care. He nodded and handed it back to Claus. “Alright, but if you swing it in my face again I’ll kill you!”

Claus grinned smugly, “Can’t kill me if I die first bro.”

“Don’t joke about that stuff, idiot!” Fuel frowned, a bit sour over stuff like that. “If you die again I’ll never forgive you, man!”

Claus shrugged, “You know it’s just a joke bro. I’d never…” He trailed off as he looked back at the house. He noticed that the crying had stopped in what he could only imagine was a really sad looking pity party.

“You know…” Claus began, “I  _ did _ try to kill him once.  _ Maybe _ twice,” he looked back at his bro, “Maybe I shouldn’t push him around as hard. I get he’s stronger and all now but, well… he’s still Lucas.” Claus stood up, “I think we should at least check on him?”

“Yeah, we should, I guess,” Fuel sighed. At least Claus’s finally thinking for once. “You go first, though, if he blows up it’s gonna be you who gets it, bro.” 

“Yeah, yeah bro, fine. You’re a coward, I get it. I guess I’ll go by myself then. Have fun with your worm, pussy,” Claus said, making his way to the house.

Fuel grumbled. Geez, he didn’t say he had to go  _ alone _ . He followed a ways behind, pushing Claus along when he hesitated at the door. 

“Go on, bro, it’s your house for fuck’s sake!” Fuel glanced around quickly for any adults before nudging him again. “Geez, I feel like I’m eight again, man! When I was scared of getting in trouble with my Dad!”

“Shut the fuck up, bro,” Claus said, shoving Fuel in, “Let’s just get this over with.”

Fuel shot him an annoyed look but followed Claus in. Lucas was found once again hunched over on his bed, knees curled up to his chest. He was just staring that the floor as he sniffled. 

“Uh… hey Luc’,” Claus started, “Sorry about uh…” he scratched the back of his head, trying to figure out what he did wrong, “upsetting you? Oh, and sorry about almost killing you too. I already apologized about that a bunch already but, well, figured another apology wouldn’t hurt.”

“Smooth, real smooth,” Fuel muttered, earning an elbow of his own from Claus. He waved sheepishly to Lucas, unsure of what to say. “Sorry for letting him be an ass to you, Luke.”

Lucas turned away from Claus, maybe out of anger, or maybe he just didn’t want him to see the tears. He knows he shouldn’t be crying like this, not after everything he’s gone through. Despite that, something about Claus always made him feel like his old self, for better or for worse. Claus had always carried this weird, pressurizing sort of air about him-an air that only really seemed to affect Lucas. Everyone else in Tazmily could just blow his twin off, so why couldn’t he? Why, after becoming so strong, was he still so weak?

“I’m sorry for being pathetic,” Lucas mumbled, burying his head in his arms, “You’d think that after all this time I’d be better than this, but nope. Sorry you have to deal with me.”

Claus frowned and went up to Lucas, who was still moping, “Dude, you know what I’m gonna say.” He knelt down to Lucas’s level and ruffled his hair, which earned him an annoyed look back, “I’m sorry for ignoring you. I know I’ve been spending a lot of time with Fuel, but, you know. I’ve got a lot of time to make up with everyone.”

“Yeah, 3 years,” Fuel muttered to himself. He sweated a bit as the two shot him an unamused glance, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. “I-I mean, y’know how it is, Luc, I haven’t seen him in ages either… but I guess that means I should know how you feel, huh? Hey, man, I’m willing to let you two have your… whatever it is that twins do.” 

  
“Twin time,” Lucas mumbled, “We used to call it twin time. But not anymore, I guess.”

“Hey come on, how ‘bout this?” Claus got up from kneeling, “Why don’t you come have some fun with us then? It doesn’t have to be a one-on-one kinda deal, I promise you that we can all share the worm.” He looked back at Fuel, “You’re good with that bro, right?”

Fuel put his free hand in his pocket. “Yeah, sure bro, why not?” Fuel held out the stick towards Lucas, partly to spite Claus. “I’m sure  _ Luke _ won’t swing the worm into my face.” 

Lucas slowly uncurled himself and gently grabbed the stick. After noticing how it bounced to and fro, he swung it right back on Fuel’s face.

“Alright, fuck you both you fucking cunts.” 

The twins laughed at Fuel’s expense. Such was life between that of bros and twins.


	19. Sling

* * *

Fuel’s eyes glazed over the four tin cans spread out evenly on the log. He rubbed his hands together and then stuck them in his pockets, pulling out his wooden slingshot and one pebble. He hadn’t used his sling in a while now, but he had a real knack for it since childhood. There was no way he was coughing up 5 DP, anyway.

“Aight, Claus,” Fuel announced proudly, arming his weapon. “Watch and learn.”

Claus stood behind the cans, his arms crossed. “I’m watching, bro, believe me! It’s gonna be funny seeing you miss!”

Fuel closed one eye as he pulled the string. “Yeah, yeah, shut up,” he muttered, taking a moment to breathe. He let go of the sling and fired the pebble, striking the lefternmost can off of the log. “What’s that about me missing?” he grinned, pulling out another pebble.

Claus rolled his eyes. “Oh, you just got lucky!”

“In _my_ experience there’s no such thing as lu—“

“Dude, shut fuck and keep going!”

Fuel sighed. Nobody gets his Star Wars references. Resigning to lament about that later, he primed his slingshot again and released… striking the second can square in the center. “Ha! Get ready to pay up, bro!”

“Keep going, bro,” Claus smirked, folding his arms behind him.

Fuel thought nothing of him, instead pulling out his third pebble and priming. He glanced over at his bro, who began to whistle, before rolling his eyes and releasing the sling.

The pebble flew straight at the can, mere inches from impact. Fuel picked up his head slightly, prepared to grin once the rock hit, but it never did. Oddly, he had missed completely, with the can having shifted to the left from prior scopes.

“Aw, shit, bro,” Claus said, putting his hands on his head in false shock. “You fucking missed, man!”

“Bro, fuck you!” Fuel shot, gesturing at the cans. “No PSI, you ass, you moved it!”

“No I didn’t! You can’t prove I did it! Just admit you missed!”

Fuel pulled out another pebble. “Don’t move it again, that’s cheating, bro!”

“ _Fiiine…_ ”

Fuel grumbled under his breath before pruning another shot and releasing. The can shifted to the right just before impact once more, but this time Claus didn’t even bother to hide his involvement. He started snickering, holding a hand over his mouth.

“Oh, you fucker,” Fuel growled, pulling out another pebble and priming. “You’re not the only one who can do that!”

Fuel shot the can closest to Claus, and manipulated it using PSI so it struck Claus square in the forehead, knocking him to the ground. Fuel began to laugh hysterically, putting his hands on his hips.

“Who’s laughing now, Claus?” Fuel chortled, laughing for a few more seconds before he realized Claus wasn’t saying anything. “Uh, bro?”

Fuel jogged over to where Claus fell, panicking silently as he saw his downed friend. “Uh, hey, Claus, I’m gonna be real mad if this a prank! Wake up, already!”

No response. Fuel put down his slingshot and knelt down, shaking Claus with increasing desperation. “Hey. Hey, Claus, wake up, this isn’t funny!”

_Oh shit, did I kill him? No, please no, no no no—_

“ _Claus!_ ” Fuel called, getting slightly teary-eyed. “How the fuck did you _die_ from _that?_ _Claus!_ ”

Claus couldn’t hold it in anymore, and started laughing. “Oh my God, are you crying?!”

Fuel was stunned. He didn’t let go as Claus sat up, pointing at him gleefully . “Bro, you actually fell for that! You’re so stupid, man!”

And he started laughing. Fuel blinked before clenching his fists. “You bastard!” he shot, grabbing his slingshot and starting to whack Claus with it, who started to laugh even harder. “I’ll kill you _this_ time, I swear!”


	20. Tread

* * *

“No, bro,” Fuel sighed. “I don’t like Splatoon—“

“Well why not?!” Claus demanded, leaning forward onto his hands. 

“Because I just don’t, okay? Geez, bro, what stick got up your butt?”

“I’m just saying, bro, it’s a pretty great game. I don’t get how you can play Star Wars and stuff but not like Splatoon!”

“What’s that supposed to mean?! Star Wars is cool! You’re just playing around with some stupid squids!”

“They’re  _ cool! _ ”

“Bro, they look like someone barfed them up. I don’t get how  _ you _ can play it.”

“Maybe I just have good taste.”

Fuel paused, and turned towards Claus slowly, a mischievous grin on his face. He stuffed his hands in his pockets as he re-approached Claus.

“Yeah, you’re right, bro,” he said in an upbeat tone. “You do have good taste! I bet those squids  _ would _ taste pretty great.”

“Wh—“

“Yeah man, I always loved seafood, why don’t we go eat some squids right now, bro?”

“Bro, stop—“

“Hey, Claus, you’re the one who brought it up! I’m down to eat some splatoon squids, though, bro, especially with salt!”

“ _ Bro! _ ” Claus protested, hitting Fuel in the arm. “I  _ get it! _ ”

“Bro, I thought you wanted to eat some squids, bro!” Fuel took on a particularly sinister smirk as he leaned in close to Claus. “I thought you wanted to vor—“

Claus turned pale immediately,and covered his ears. “Somebody fucking kill me!” He screamed, quite ready to die a third time.

Fuel watched him run out of the treehouse and off to who knows where. He smiled proudly at himself and finally sat down to do some Star Wars. All in a day’s work of treading on his bro’s interests.


	21. Treasure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> clausbook really out here making an error with the drawing dates huh lmao, this chapter is cursed so i blame them

* * *

“Claus, look! Bro, you gotta check this out!”

Claus turned to face an approaching Fuel, waving a piece of paper in the air wildly. Claus stared at him as he caught his breath, wondering what all the fuss was.

“Dude, Claus, some old guy just sold me a treasure map for 40 DP, I can’t believe it!”

“…Someone sold you a treasure map for 40 DP?!” Claus repeated incredulously.

“ _ Yeah! _ Can you believe it, bro? We’re gonna be rich!”

Claus balled up his fists. “Well let me see!”

Fuel shifted his position to show Claus the beaten up paper. It was definitely one of Mapson’s maps, since the accuracy was there, but it was marked pretty poorly with crayons. 

“Look, bro,” Fuel pointed out. “It’s right near Mt. Oriander, X marks the spot!”

“Bro… I think you got scammed.”

“Whaddya mean, bro?”

“Someone just drew over this with crayon, bro, this looks like something Alle would make!”

“Hey, nobody said pirates were artists, bro! Aw, this is gonna be totally rad, man!”

“Oh, brother…”

* * *

“It’s this way, Claus,” Fuel called. “Hurry up!”

Claus frowned, trudging behind slowly. “Did they really have to bury treasure near Mt. Oriander, of all places?”

“ _ That’s _ what you’re thinking about?”

Claus stuffed his hands in his pockets. “I can’t help it! This place is pretty… stupid.”

“ _ You’re _ pretty stupid,” Fuel shot, both of them knowing exactly what he meant. “…Now shut up and help me look, bro, it’s around here somewhere!”

And he went off in a random direction, scrutinizing everything for a sign of the “treasure.” 

“But you only brought one shovel!” Claus protested, throwing his hands up. “Even if there was some stupid treasure, we’d never be able to—“

Fuel waved to Claus. “Found it! Look, man, x marks the spot!”

Claus’s eye twitched. How’d he find it so fast? He glanced over his friend’s shoulder, and sure enough, there was a giant red x in the ground, ready to be dug up. Fuel immediately got to work, leaving Claus to watch. Something about this whole thing still didn’t feel right.

“Bro, this is gonna be rad,” Fuel said as he dug deeper. “We’re gonna be rich!”

“This still feels like a scam, bro,” Claus said, still unimpressed even as Fuel dug up a wooden chest. “Like, what if this is a big prank or something?”

“Quit worrying so much, dude! Hop down and help me open this thing!”

Claus hesitated for a moment, but eventually leapt into the hole with Fuel. If nothing else, it would be funny if it blew up in Fuel’s face. They each took a side of the chest and opened it, albeit slowly, golden light filtering out at every opportunity. The hinges were stubborn and refused to relent, but eventually the chest was opened, revealing a large group of golden…

Minions.

Fuel and Claus’s jaw dropped as the beasts gazed at them, some with one eye and others with two, but each glare was filled with malice. The bros instantly had several violent flashbacks, a shiver sent down their spine.

“S-Shit,” they both choked, holding each other as the minions slowly climbed out of the chest. 

And here they had thought they got rid of them. 


	22. Ghost

* * *

Caroline was about to take another sip of water when the door to Lighter’s cabin opened up, revealing the man’s son, the moonlight leaking in behind him. He waved sheepishly at Caroline and his father, slowly took his hand off the wooden door, and headed towards the stairs, his hands stuffed inside his red hoodie.

“The least you could do is say hello, Fuel,” Lighter called. 

Fuel paused his ascent up the stairs and turned to the adults. “Hi,” he muttered, before resuming the climb upstairs, eventually disappearing entirely. 

Caroline turned to Lighter, clearly worried. “He doesn’t seem well.”

“No, he hasn’t been taking anything well. The fire was one thing, but now…” Lighter trailed off, searching for a word to use. “The incident.”

Caroline nodded slowly. “Angie’s definitely a bit shaken up as well, but this is something else. I haven’t seen Fuel sulk like that before.”

“The boy’s not good with coping. He hasn’t taken that hoodie off, either. He’ll be fine if he could just… find some way to get his mind off everything.”

“Hm… perhaps work, then? Once the bakery is rebuilt I’m sure I could find a place for him.”

“That would do nicely. Thank you, Caroline.”

“Of course. I’d hate to see the boy change for the worst.”

* * *

_ Everything IS changing for the worst!  _ Fuel thought angrily.  _ My best friend’s gone! _

Fuel frowned. Was he ever coming back? Was he gone, or just outright dead? Lighter refused to say the word around him, but it was obvious he was thinking it. It was obvious they both were, both of them assuming the worst. It was just a matter of who was gonna admit it first.

Fuel sat on the floor, his arms crossed. Going off to face a Drago with only a kitchen knife… Claus couldn’t be  _ that  _ stupid, could he? Maybe he already knew that answer… more than anyone else, he  _ should _ know. He should’ve  _ known _ . He could’ve done something!

It didn’t matter either way, anymore. Claus was gone. It’s been months now, but it still feels like yesterday.

Fuel frowned. It’s like he could still hear Claus’s voice. His annoying, shill, non-puberty hitting voice…

“Hey, I can hear you thinking about me, Fuel!” Claus’s voice called. 

Fuel’s head whirled around. That sounded way too much like Claus to be a coincidence. Or maybe he was dreaming…

“You’re not dreaming, Fuel! If you were I’m pretty sure this would be like, something Star Wars-y or something stupid.”

Fuel blinked. “Cl-Claus?” he called, glancing around in search. “What’s going on? Where are you?!”

“Up here, doofus!”

Fuel looked up, his jaw dropping as he laid eyes on the ghostly image of Claus, just as he had last seen him. Claus waved at him, a bit too excited about being a ghost.

Fuel jumped to his feet. “Claus, you’re—you’re  _ dead! _ ”

“Yeah, I know… cool, huh?”

“NO, it’s NOT cool!” Fuel hissed, balling up his fists. “Dying on your bro probably violates like…  _ something  _ in the bro code!”

“Everything I do that you don’t like violates the bro code! It doesn’t help that you made it up! I don’t even know it!”

“Oh, shut up!”

“Bro, Fuel, calm down, it’s alright! Why’re you so mad?!”

“No it’s  _ not _ ‘alright!’ You think I’m gonna be happy about you being a fucking ghost?! Bro, that means you’re dead! You’re not coming back!”

“I… I guess, but… look on the bright side!”

“ _ What _ bright side?! You think there’s a  _ bright  _ side to losing your best friend?!”

“Bro, I…” Claus trailed off. “I’m sorry, okay? I shouldn’t have run off…”

“Oh, you think? You idiot…”

“I know… I am. But you didn’t lose me, man, I’m right here! We can still talk!”

“It’s not the same, don’t you get it?! It’s _not_ the same! Every time I look at you, I’m just gonna be reminded of the time I let my bro run off and _die!_ Didn’t you know how I’d feel?! Can’t you think about someone else for _one_ _second_?!”

Claus fell silent. Fuel huffed and sat on the floor, stuffing his hands into his hoodie. He closed his eyes, a half-hearted attempt at hiding his tears. 

Claus floated over towards Fuel’s bed, and, after trying and failing to sit properly on it, just sorta hovered there. “I’m sorry, bro… I’ll make it up to you, I promise.”


	23. Ancient

* * *

Fuel was starving, he had skipped breakfast to be with his friend, and now it was almost lunchtime. Too bad there was nothing around here to eat; just some rocks and dirt-although he  _ did  _ eat dirt that one time… but that was different, that was for 5 bucks. Right now he was actually hungry! 

“Let’s hurry, Fuel,” Claus called, pointing northward. “We gotta meet up with the others, and you know how weird Stumble Pass can get.”

Fuel frowned. So far, Stumble Pass wasn’t all that stumble-y. Or maybe they were just too cool to stumble. His stomach growled in order to bring him back on task; he needed to eat, and fast. If not, he could die… or something! Fuel’s eyes darted around the area quickly, and he almost couldn’t believe them. There was a lot of banana peels around, oddly. Someone had clearly been here before.

“C’mon, Fuel, you’re slowing down!” Claus called, impatient. “Is something wrong?”

“ _ Yeah _ there’s something wrong, I’m starving!”

“We can eat later,” Claus said, hoping to appease him. “I have food in my backpack!”

“Why do  _ you  _ get to carry the food?”

Claus groaned. “Because you’d eat it all!” he shot. “Now hurry up!”

Fuel grumbled and quickened his pace—only a little bit, though. Claus was definitely determined to keep moving, but Fuel’s ridiculously stubborn when food’s involved. His eyes drifted towards the banana peels again, as if they’d magically catch an uneaten banana somewhere 

_ …Wait, an uneaten banana?  _ Fuel repeated, catching his own thoughts.  _ There  _ is _ one… right there! _

A banana laid on its side on his left, peeking out from behind a rock, alone and on its side. Fuel smiled and ran over towards it quickly, swooping it up without a second thought. He stopped to peel it, all but ignoring how old and beaten up it was. The peel was practically black at this point, and the banana itself didn’t look much better.

“Fuel, pick up the pace…” Claus groaned, stopping when he didn’t hear anything in response. He whipped around angrily, spotting Fuel peeling the most disgusting banana he had ever seen. “ _ Fuel! _ ” he exclaimed, dashing over towards him. “Bro, what the fuck are you doing?!”

“Eating, give me a sec!”

“Dude, that banana looks like someone shit it out! Don’t eat that!”

“Oh, this is just like when I told you not to eat those poison berries, but you ate them anyway!”

“I was  _ eight! _ ”

Fuel ignored him, too busy licking his lips in hunger. Claus snatched the banana out of his hand angrily.

“Dude, what the fuck do you think you’re doing?! I can’t have you getting sick because you’re a dumbass! Not now!”

Fuel glared at him, before shrugging. “Yeah, sure, bro, you’re right. Sorry.”

Claus eyes him for a moment, before sighing and lowering his guard. “I’m sorry, too, man, I know we had to leave Tazmily super fast and everything, and—“

Fuel snatched the banana out of his hand, and quickly shoved it in his mouth. Claus immediately screamed in rage as Fuel chewed the banana, looking him dead in the eye as he did so.

Claus was ready to tear out his hair. “BRO! You’re gonna get SICK!”

Fuel discarded the peel. “ _ That’s _ a problem for future me.”

“You should’ve ate before we left!” Claus spluttered, trying to understand his friend. “Why didn’t you eat  _ normal  _ food before we left?!”

“You  _ rushed  _ me!” Fuel replied, gesturing back towards Tazmily. “I’ll be  _ fine _ , bro, let’s just keep moving!”

Claus glared at him, before sighing. “Fine…” 

* * *

“Ugh… okay, bro,” Fuel complained, his stomach growling even louder now. “I’m not fine, man. I am  _ not  _ fine.”

It took every ounce of maturity and self-control Claus had to stop him from strangling Fuel.


	24. Dizzy

* * *

Fuel stared at the teacups attraction, grimacing a bit as he saw how fast they spun. “Uh, bro, do you really want to get on those things?”

“Yeah, bro, it’ll be sweet! They go super fast and—“

“Yeah, that’s what I’m afraid of! I’m gonna get sick for sure!”

“Aw, quit being such a wimp!”

“You’re gonna get sick too, dumbass. Can’t we ride something else?”

“Like what? You’re the one who’s scared of roller coasters!”

“I’m scared of the  _ big  _ roller coasters! I can ride the smaller ones!”

“But those are boring!”

“ _ You’re _ boring! Look, if we get on that thing we’re gonna regret it!”

“Bro, you really gonna ruin my birthday like this?”

“Oh, don’t pull that crap. I’m not budging.”

“Pleease?” Claus pleaded.

“No.”

“Aight bro, fine. I  _ dare  _ you to get on with me!”

“You  _ dare  _ me?”

“Did I stutter?”

“… _ Fine! _ Let’s get this over with.”

“Haha, yeah bro, thanks!”

Claus dragged a grumbling Fuel all the way to the spinning cups, refusing to let him go until he sat down. Fuel stared down at the wheel, reluctantly placing his hands on it.

“Oh great, I already feel sick…”

“C’mon, bro, it hasn’t even started yet!”

Soon the ride started turning its way, and right as Claus slammed his hands on the steering wheel to turn their cup, Fuel stopped him.

“Bro, I  _ really _ don’t think we should do this.”

“Do what?  _ This?! _ ” Claus asked as he yanked the steering wheel towards him. However, the steering wheel barely moved them, despite Claus’s vigor.

Fuel blinked, sighing in relief. He leaned forward a bit in an effort to get in Claus’s face. “Geez, did you let yourself go or something, bro? Where’s your muscles?” 

Claus glared at Fuel, “Well if  _ I’m  _ so weak, why don’t you try then?”

“Okay, fine,” Fuel said, gripping the wheel tightly. “Watch and learn bro,” he said proudly as he attempted to turn it, to no avail. “Wow, why the hell is this thing so… stiff?!”

“‘Cause the engineers of this place live out of spite, I guess,” He replied, pulling onto the steering wheel with all his might, “God, this is such a rip off! How am I supposed to feel the thrill of pseudo nausea if I can’t spin this shit!”

“Thank god we can’t spin this shit,” Fuel breathed, crossing his arms. “Aw well, we’re fucking stuck here, so great. This was a pretty fun ride, bro.” 

Claus threw his hands up before slumping in his seat, “God, now this ride is so! Boring!” He looked at his bro, “How can you find slow shit like this fun?”

Fuel rolled his eyes. “I was being  _ sarcastic _ , bro, nothing about this was fun! We could’ve gone on the bumper cars or something, bro!” Fuel complained, gesturing off towards the other attractions. “Or, we could’ve, like,  _ ate _ . I wanted to go to the buffet, bro, I’m starving!” 

“Sucks to be you bro,” Claus said, pulling out a chocolate bar out of his pocket, “Shoulda prepared more.”

Fuel immediately reached over, an attempt to grab the bar from his friend’s hand. “Give it here, bro, I need it more than you!” 

Claus raised the bar of chocolate above his head, “Bro, get away from my chocolate!”

Fuel was basically on top of the cup’s wheel at this point, eventually yoinking the bar out of Claus’s hand, smirking victoriously as he began to eat. “Ew, it’s not even Hershey’s.” 

Claus started panicking, “Bro, stop! There’s peanuts in there!”

“W- _ What _ ?!” Fuel exclaimed, his expression turning into one of pure anger. “Why the FUCK would you ruin perfectly good chocolate with  _ peanuts?! _ ” he hissed, clearly not even noticing his face starting to swell. 

“I brought it  _ specifically  _ so you wouldn’t steal it- ah fuck, oh shit, where’s your epipen?!”

“In my shorts, why?” Fuel asked, before realizing.” God dammit, bro, you fucker! I’m gonna die in a  _ teacup!  _ Bro, hurry up and get my epipen out of my shorts before I die or something!” 

Claus wanted to yell at him to get it himself but knew that now wasn’t the time for banter. He reached into one of Fuel’s pockets and found a box of matches, spare change, the Hummingbird Egg, before finally find his epi-pen. Without even thinking, he jammed the needle into his bro’s arm, hoping that it wasn’t too late.

Fuel yelped in pain, panting as leaned back in his seat. “Y-You can have the rest of the chocolate bar, bro,” he said, still feeling queasy. “I think I’m gonna be sick, man.” 

“Bro why the  _ fuck  _ would I want it back, you got your weirdo germs all over it now!” He took the epipen out of his bro’s arm, “Uhh, should I stab it again? Are you still dying, bro?”

“Just fucking put it away,” Fuel groaned. “I just want to get off Mr. Bones’ wild ride right now.”

Just as Fuel begged it get off, the ride slowed to a stop, allowing the bros the freedom they had long since desired since boarding the ride. Claus took Fuel over his shoulder and help his queasy bro out of the park.

“Well, I figured that this is how it would’ve ended. I just didn’t expect the way we got here to be… that.”


	25. Tasty

* * *

It had been a long day at the carnival, and the bros had decided to sit down somewhere to get out of the sun-and more importantly, to eat. Fuel had gone off to spend his money, considering he had already ate all of the snacks he brought. 

Claus glanced around impatiently. It had been at least five minutes, and the food court wasn’t too far away. Where could he have—

“Hey, bro,” Fuel’s voice called, grabbing Claus’s attention. “Gee, it’s pretty hot out here, huh?” He sat down next to Claus, elbowing his friend playfully. “Or is it just—“

Claus rolled his eyes. “It’s just you,” he said, before noticing the chocolate ice cream in Fuel’s hand, coated in sprinkles. “Bro, you didn’t even bring me one?”

“Oh, uh, right. I’ll get you one, bro-you like mint chocolate right?” he asked, standing up. He licked his ice cream once, before turning towards his friend again. “Did you bring lactaid?”

Like he even had to ask. Claus gave him a knowing look. “Does it matter?”

“Uh, yeah it fucking does,” Fuel huffed, sitting back down. “I don’t feel like dragging your sick ass home.”

“Bro, fuck you, just get me some ice cream!”

Fuel ignored him, focusing on his ice cream fully. He began to take more dramatic licks, almost as if to taunt Claus. Claus frowned, and began to open his backpack, digging through in order to find the food he brought with him; a peanut butter jelly sandwich, smooshed and beaten but still edible.

Fuel glanced over at the sandwich, sighing. “Bro, seriously? Don’t be like that.”

“You started it!” Claus shot, unwrapping the sandwich. “I just wanted some ice cream, man.”

“Oh, you want some ice cream?”

“Yeah I do!”

Fuel leaned over and smashed his ice cream into Claus’s sandwich, making sure to spread it all over. He pulled his hand back, smirking at his friend.

“There, bro, there’s your ice cream,” he said smugly.

“You got peanut butter on yours, smart one,” Claus scoffed. “ _ I’ll _ survive if I eat my sandwich. You won’t!”

“Oh, wanna bet?”

“Yeah I wanna fucking bet!”

“Alright, on the count of 3 we’ll eat it at the same time!”

“Fine!” Claus said, a determined grin on his face.

Fuel prepared himself. “1…” 

“2…”

“3!” they both exclaimed, shoving their food into their mouths.

They both immediately reacted poorly to the contaminated items and were rushed to the nearby hospital.


	26. Dark

* * *

It was a dark, cloudy day in Tazmily. The air was cold, as if it too understood that today just wasn’t gonna be a swaggie day. A gentle, icy rain began to sprinkle over Tazmily, small droplets trailing on the bedroom window of Claus’s room.

He stared at the droplets, holing himself up in what little warmth he had, in the form of an edgy black hoodie. Claus relied on the sun, and thusly, heat, for survival, which made cloudy, miserable days like this the absolute worst for him. This was the drawback he suffered for all the neat enhancements of being a dope ass chimera, as he was solar powered.

He felt like shit, and he had no energy to try to make himself feel better, so like a true edgy teenager, he moped.

Lucas led Fuel to his bro, the two frowning as they laid eyes upon the sad sight. Lucas shook his head, “Here he is. He’s been like that all day, so… I hope you can help him.”

“Yeah, it’s even worse than I thought,” Fuel muttered, taking his hands out of his hoodie. “I’ll need some alone time with him, alright?”

Lucas nodded, gave one last forlorn gaze at Claus, and left. Fuel carefully approached Claus, knowing any sudden moves could set him off. He kneeled down next to Claus, attempting to make eye contact. “Hey, bro, how’s it hanging?” 

His bro merely avert his eyes to the side, burying his face into his arms. He kept a tense silence as the air around the bros became kinda awkward.

“Hey, doofus, don’t you recognize me?” Fuel continued, before sighing as he realized that wouldn’t work. “Come on, bro, don’t be like that!”

Claus looked up at Fuel briefly before looking away with a forlorn gaze. “Of course I recognize you, I just…” his mumble trailed off with a sigh.

“You just what, man?” Fuel asked. “Hey, you know I have PSI now, right? You can come to me for warmth and stuff, bro!” 

“I’m happy for you bro. That you have been blessed with good PSI,” Claus’s tone of voice grew dark, “It’s not like having PSI has done me any good. It’s caused me nothing but misery, but iunno.” He shrugged as he shut his eyes, “Maybe I deserve this.”

“Hey. Hey,” Fuel called, getting in Claus’s face to make eye contact. “Don’t say that, you don’t deserve this or anything that happened to you! Come on, bro, I get it! I hate the rain and the cold and shit, too! But that’s why we gotta stick together on days like this, alright? We can be each other’s warmth!” 

Claus stayed silent as he gazed in front of him, looking at nothing in particular.

“Come  _ on,  _ bro, at least say something! What happened to the bro  _ I  _ know?” 

“He’s dead,” Claus grumbled, trying not to cry.

Fuel frowned. “Bro, don’t even joke about that. You know exactly how I felt when I lost you.” 

“It’s not a joke,” he said as he looked at Fuel, “I don’t… feel like me. I feel like someone else. Someone worse. Not that I was a great person to begin with, but now I’m just… I dunno,” Claus shrugged, “Maybe I should’ve stayed dead.”

That was the last straw. Fuel put his hands on Claus’ shoulders and shook him. “Bro, don’t you  _ ever _ say that again, man! You’re my  _ best friend _ , you fucking idiot! If I lost you  _ again, _ I… I… I wouldn’t know  _ what  _ I’d do! Get a fucking grip, man, for once you have to think about someone other than yourself! For  _ once _ , Claus!”

Claus stared at Fuel with wide eyes. He knew his bro was right, but he had a hard time following through on his words. He felt his pride sink as he held back his tears, but he knew that no matter what he did, he’d look pathetic to his bro. He held tightly onto his bro’s arm with his human hand and started to cry. “I’m sorry…” he sobbed, “I’m sorry that you have to put up with me…”

Fuel smiled warmly. “Bro, I love putting up with you, man…”

Claus pulled Fuel towards him and hugged him tightly. He clinged onto his bro as if he would lose him should he lose his grip. For the first time that day, he felt something warm in his heart.

“Thank you bro… thank you for being there for me. For existing, for just…” He sniffled, “I love you so much bro…”

“Bro… I love you too, bro…” 

Claus settled himself in the warm, loving arms of his bro and whispered, “No homo, bro.”


	27. Coat

* * *

Fuel jumped out of the railway cart, stretching his arms out and yawning loudly as he did so. He smacked his lips as he put his hand over his eyes, gazing off at the forest below. If you fell off this cliff, you’d probably not feel very good, definitely. Best not to do that, of course! After all, it was time… 

Claus stepped out of the cart, earning a grin from Fuel. “Club Tittyboob time!” Fuel exclaimed, gesturing in the direction of the building itself. 

Claus repressed a snicker. It was a really stupid joke, but after everything he’s put up with, he enjoyed spiting anything made by the Pigmasks.

“Yeah bro, let’s have some fun at CLUB TITTYBOOB!” Claus yelled at the top of his lungs, to the annoyance of all the patrons around the club.

The pair of rowdy teens made their way towards the entrance, obviously ignoring the signs scattered around that quite clearly stated that only adults were allowed, age 21 and up. It was little surprise that the bouncers stopped them, since it was, you know, their job. 

“Goddammit, more kids?” Neckbeard groaned before yelling at the two, “Scram, you brats! I ain’t putting up with your child-like man and dog-like boy shenanigans no longer!”

Skinhead nodded, like a coward, “Yeah, you heard the man, scram!”

Claus scoffed, “What, you’re not gonna even check our ID’s?” He crossed his arms, “‘Cause if you did, then you’d know that I’m  _ above you _ .”

He smugly handed out his ID, written in crayon that said “Claus. Immortal (probably). Commander of the Pigmasks.”

The two bouncers looked at the ID and laughed, “You really expect us to believe any of that nonsense?” They threw his shitty cardboard ID back at him, “Get lost, or we’ll make you get lost!”

“Hey, don’t you know who you’re talking to?!” Fuel shot, pointing towards Claus. “That’s like, the dude who pulled the seven needles and crap! He’ll mess you up, man!” He pushed Claus towards them and brought his voice down to a whisper, “Go on, dude, mess them up!”

Claus glared at Fuel and whispered, “Thanks for nothin’ bro.” He looked back at the bouncers and assumed his stupid Mega Man foot stance and turned his arm into an arm cannon, “Alright, you losers asked for it!”

Unfortunately for the bros, they were outmatched. See, even though Claus was the ex-commander of the Pigmasks and also may or may not have the power of God, he was only like, level 60. Fuel was a measly level 5. They stood no chance again the secret final bosses of Mother 3, who were each level 99 respectively. 

Someone  _ was  _ messed up, but unfortunately for Fuel it was him and Claus. Neckbeard and Skinhead trounced them both with ease, and dropped them off at the railway station, much to everyone else’s amusement. Not to mention their collective 2 DP savings was now reduced to 1, as per the laws of the world. 

Fuel rubbed the back of his head, now sore all over, “God bro, I can’t believe you’re so weak.”

His bro glared at him, “You threw me into that! I didn’t ask for a fight! Besides, you were useless! The hell were you doing those three years I was missing anyway?!”

“Oh, I don’t know,  _ crying? _ ” Fuel pouted, folding his arms. _ “ _ Bro, you can literally cause magic explosions, how the fuck did you lose?!” 

“They had the power of God and anime on their side bro, how was I supposed to match that?” Claus grumbled, “Man, that sucks, I really wanted in. I never got to go when I was stuck being a robot slave and stuff.”

“Yeah, how do you think I feel?” Fuel grumbled, scratching his head for a second. “Hey, if they only let adults in, then we’re just gonna have to get a disguise! Like a… a coat, or something!”

“A coat? You mean like a long ass trenchcoat, bro? Like you see in cartoons?” Claus sighed, “Bro that’s not gonna work and you know it. They already know what we look like, so whoever’s on top is gonna get caught anyway.”

Fuel rolled his eyes. “That’s why we’re gonna get a hat and a mustache, smart one.” 

“You know if you wanted to get a convincing disguise, I could just get my old helmet out-”

“ _ NO! _ ”

Claus backed the fuck up, “Okay, okay bro. No helmet then.” He put a hand on his chin, doing the thinking emoji face, “Still, what kinda disguise do you think is gonna work?”

“Bro, don’t worry about that,” Fuel assured, pointing proudly at himself. “I’ll take care of it, you just go find a trenchcoat! Meet me back at the railway station when you’re done, alright?” 

Claus sighed, “Okay bro, whatever you say,” he said as he walked away mumbling, “This is gonna be a catastrophe…”

* * *

Fuel glanced around as he awaited Claus at the railway, holding a fedora in one hand and a pair of sunglasses in his other. He tapped his foot impatiently, “What’s taking Claus so long?” 

Just as he said that, Claus came up to him dragging a largeass beat up trenchcoat in the dirt. He looked a little tattered himself, “Aight bro, I got your damn coat.”

“Geez, you look like you got hit by a bus.”

Claus groaned, “I fucking wish I was, I had to pry this shit off of a Nice Guy™. They don’t hit hard until you touch their shitty clothes I guess. But here,” he tossed the black, smelly trenchcoat at his bro, “do whatever you gotta do bro.”

The trenchcoat smacked Fuel and sent him tumbling to the ground. He managed to give a thumbs up from underneath, before taking it off of him. “Alright bro, we’ve got everything! Alright, dude, gimme a piggyback ride. We gotta put it on and act all tall and stuff!” 

“Why am I the one on the bottom?! You’re the one who could use the workout!”

“Because I don’t weigh as much as you do, obviously.”

“Fucking rude. I have half a nerve to just dump your ass in this ravine bro.”

Fuel crossed his arms. “Look, do you want to get in Club Tittyboob or not, bro?”

Claus sighed, “You know I do bro…”

“Then let’s do this! It’s a team effort, bro! C’mon!” 

Claus knelt down as he hoisted Fuel on his shoulders.  _ This is gonna be a disaster, but I gotta do it,  _ Claus thought,  _ For Tittyboob! _

The two managed to wrap the trenchcoat around them, and Fuel put on the shades and adjusted his fedora. “Aw, yeah, this is gonna rock! Alright bro, you just gotta listen to my directions and crap, alright?”

“Bro you know I’m shit with directions but I’ll try my best,” Claus said as he took his first steps forward, which ended up being towards the edge of the cliff.

“WEAST, BRO, WEAST”

“WHAT THE FUCK IS WEAST,” Claus said as he lost his footing, causing them to tumble down the ravine.

“WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAST!” Fuel screamed as the bros fell to their dooms. 

The moment Claus felt the sensation of them falling, he let out an, “OH SHIT,” as he tried desperately to wriggle himself out of the trenchcoat. Unfortunately for him, Fuel’s legs clung onto Claus too tightly, leaving him stuck diving towards their untimely deaths. In an act of pure desperation, he let out his wings, which allowed him to glide moderately, but led to Fuel losing his balance and falling off him with trenchcoat and fedora in tow.

“I NEVER GOT TO FINISH STAR WARS JEDI ACADEMY!”

Claus dove after his degenerate bro and managed to catch his arms, losing the fedora and trenchcoat along the way. With his bro in tow, he sighed as he flew him back up to the top of the cliff. “My bad, bro,” he sheepishly said.

“Bro, that…” Fuel panted, sitting down. “That was totally awesome.” 

“I know right?! I fucking love flying man! Literally the best part of being an abomination,” he said, jumping up and flapping his wings, as if to show off.

“Yeah, bro, you’re an abomination alright,” Fuel sighed. “But you’re my abomination, man.”

Claus sat next to his bro and smiled, “But you know what you are bro?”

“What, bro?”

“You’re my a _ bro _ mination, bro.”

“Bro…”

“Bro…”

“Bro…”

“Bro…”

“Can you two PLEASE get a room?!” 

“Yeah, sure,” Claus said, grinning, “We’ll go get a  _ bro _ om.”

“Bro…”

“Bro…”

“Bro…”

“Bro…”

“Bro-” 

“SHUT UP,  _ PLEASE _ ”

And so the bros continued their broing until the day grew old, with losers judging a bromance that they will never comprehend. Fitting, as only those who become maximum bros and understand the art of bromance. A shame that society(that we live in) will never understand their ways. 


	28. Ride

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> i literally planned this chapter out to be wholesome and meaningful but clausbook literally ruined everything so have their shitpost

* * *

Fuel pushed a blindfolded Claus impatiently forward, a bit too eager for whatever he had planned. He took in the fresh air of Mt. Oriander, raving about the day’s events. 

“This is gonna be great, bro, trust me!” he said, grinning. “Don’t slow down now!” 

“If I take off this blindfold and I’m right next to a cliff, I’m gonna push you right off it,” Claus grumbled.

“You’re not next to a cliff, dimwit,” Fuel huffed, taking off the blindfold. “You’re at Drago plateau!” 

Claus stared into the vast, nostalgic Drago plateau. “Hello darkness my old friend...” he softly sang.

Fuel rolled his eyes. “Bro, honestly, shut the fuck up. Come on, I have something to show you!” he said, dashing off whilst waving his hand. 

Claus narrowed his eyes as he followed his bro, wary of what lies within the plateau.

By the time Claus caught up with Fuel, he was already petting a few dragos, most noticeably a purple one that seemed to have taken a shine to the kid. It was clearly young, but nevertheless seemed eager to play. 

“Look, Claus!” Fuel called. “The Dragos had babies again!”

Claus’s fight or flight senses went off immediately the moment he laid eyes upon the forsaken Drago. He immediately pulled out his flashy-ass thunder sword and pointed his arm cannon at it.

Fuel’s jaw dropped, and he stepped in front of the Dragos, waving his arms wildly. “BRO! Calm down, they’re just _Dragos!_ ”

“That _thing_ is no Drago, bro! That thing is something far worse,” his red eye lit up edgily, “That thing must be eliminated immediately.” Before his bro could respond, Claus charged straight at the Drago and launched a lightning attack directly at it.

The purple drago was actually sans and he gaster blaster’d claus to death resulting in his third death, the end

This is incorrect as sans is a claus kinnie and would never do that to his fellow kin. He rose from the ashes (which wasn’t a drago) and smited all evil from the world in one fell blast, eradicating barney from all of existence. Fuel suffered a great casualty that day.

barne y cannot be killed, barney is the dark dragon, barney is god

If barney is a god then it is now up to claus to kill god. As is typical for a claus kinnie

Fuel stopped claus and began to sing a musical number to the tune of how to save a life on why barney is a good drago and stopped claus 

Claus passionately played megalovania on his kazoo as sans rose behind him to help save the world from the blight that is barney the dinosaur.

“If u kill barney u kill me” fuel said

“Then _perish_ ,” claus said, destroying his bro alongside the forsaken. A sacrifice that must be made for the goodness of humanity.

Claus won, but at what cost smh

He sadly played megalovania on his kazoo as he cried as an ode to his bro.


	29. Injured

* * *

McDonalds, the symbol of capitalism, a literal hell on earth. Those who walk in do not walk out the same-so it should have been of little surprise to Fuel that his bro wanted to go in. Claus wasn’t exactly known for his intelligence, after all, but this was different. It was almost like he was in a trance, being dragged in to the restaurant against his very will. 

“Bro, please,” Fuel begged, trying in vain to hold Claus back. “Think of your already fragile health!”

Claus stared at the unholy golden arches and simply said, “McNaldos… Bro…” He sauntered his way in, “I need… McFlurry…”

“But bro, you forgot lactaid!” Fuel cried, waving his hands in the air. “ _Again!_ ”

He snapped out of his trance briefly and looked at his bro with a smug grin, “Nah, nah bro, look!” He pulled out a bottle of lactaid from his jacket pocket, “See bro! I always come prepared.”

Fuel deadpanned and snatched away the bottle. He opened it and shot an annoyed look right back at his bro, “Bro, it’s fucking EMPTY!”

Claus’s smug look dropped, “Oh. Well,” he opened the doors of hell regardless, “If I can survive a Drago attack and being struck by lightning, it’s not like a shake is gonna kill me, right?”

“That’s _literally_ what’s gonna happen!” Fuel got in front of Claus. “I’m not gonna let you do this, bro, so just forget about it!”

“Yeah, well, bro, did you consider that, just maybe…” Claus trailed off when he suddenly violently shoved Fuel to the side and made a mad dash inside McDonalds, causing a ruckus for the unfortunate employees in there.

“Oh lord here he come,” a seasoned employee groaned.

“Somebody fucking stop him!” Fuel screamed, clearly panicking. “He’s gonna kill himself! Again!”

None of the employees paid him mind however, as they were used to their clientele dropping dead at zero notice. Of course, having yet another casualty would be a major inconvenience now, as they had just disposed of the bodies they already had a couple minutes ago. No one wanted to go back out to the McGraveyard again, but they resigned themselves to their fate, as you do when you make minimum wage at a shitty dead end job.

Claus yeeted himself over the counter and slapped down $10 on the counter. “Keep the change!” he yelled as he dashed to the McFlurry machine, and thusly, his destiny.

Fuel watched helplessly as Claus poured countless amounts of McFlurries into his mouth straight from the machine. He was gonna die. 

As Claus finished his treat to himself, he screeched, “I AM A GOD AMONG MEN.” Truly, this was to be the highlight of his day…

But that was only because it was downhill from there.

Three hours later, Claus mysteriously disappeared. He didn’t even tell his bro where he had gone, but within a couple minutes, he was gone. Even though Claus didn’t say a word, Fuel knew exactly where he was.

“Bro!” Fuel yelled, knocking on the bathroom door, “Bro!!! Are you alive in there? Blink twice if you’re alive!”

Having the bathroom door between them, Claus was unable to blink at Fuel, so Fuel naturally assumed the worst.

Fuel banged on the door, desperate for a response. “Bro, hey, bro, at least groan if you’re still alive! You idiot, speak to me, or something!”

As if on cue, Claus led out a long, painful groan. Fuel heard the flush of the toilet and the running water of the sink before he saw the door open and was greeted with the miserable appearance of his pale, sickly bro.

“I’m alive… bro…” Claus groaned as he collapsed in front of him.

Fuel caught his friend in his arms on reflex. He simply stared at the bathroom door for a moment before sighing. “Good night, sweet prince,” he muttered, lifting up his bro in both arms and turning towards the exit. Fuel walked past the shocked patrons and disgruntled employees who went right back to their duties. They knew the two would be back next week.

It was just another normal day at McDonald’s.

  
  



	30. Catch

* * *

Fuel’s feet waved in the air as he watched his bro fish off the pier. As boring as fishing was for someone who had forgotten their rod, he didn’t seem too particularly bothered by his lack of movement. It was pretty easy to keep occupied, considering he could talk to Claus for hours. 

The setting sun’s rays reflected off the water; an entire day of fishing with nothing to show for it. The bros were used to it at this point, it was more or less the experience they wanted now. Claus definitely wanted it; considering he’d been MIA for three years. It was one of the first things he wanted once he recovered, and frankly Fuel wanted it too.

“ _ Please _ tell me you got a bite,” Fuel said, finally noticing how late it’s getting. 

“Hey, maybe if you were helping we might’ve got one already!” Claus replied, turning towards him. “We’re gonna stay here all night if we have to, bro, I’m definitely gonna catch one today!”

“Don’t you think fish have to, like, sleep?” Fuel laughed. “I don’t think you can stay up  _ all  _ night, bro.”

“Watch me.”

“You have, like,  _ no _ self-control.”

“ _ You  _ have no self-control!” Claus shot. He grinned. “I’m pretty sure you ate bugs or something once!”

“ _ What _ ? Bro, I was six! Why do you remember the stupidest shit?” 

“I dunno…” Claus sighed, turning back towards the water. “My brain… and everything. Everything just feels weird, now.”

“Whaddya mean?”

Claus huffed. “You know! The arm…” he said, holding up the metallic prosthetic. “…And everything! I don’t feel right, bro!”

“Well… duh, bro,” Fuel muttered, gesturing off in the direction of Mt. Oriander. “Yeah, I mean… after everything, duh,” he said with an awkward chuckle.

It fell quiet for a moment. Fuel rubbed the back of his head, briefly unsure of what to say. Claus tightened his grip on the rod, as if he had to hold onto something to stay with his friend.

Fuel blinked, before gazing off towards the horizon. “I didn’t feel right either, Claus, so… y’know. I get it.”

“Huh?”

“I mean… I didn’t know what I was gonna do without you. We did a ton of stuff together, and I didn’t even realize until you were gone. My whole routine every day just felt super lonely. So, yeah, nothing felt right in Tazmily either, bro. It felt like I lost a big part of myself.”

It fell quiet again. It always did when this kind of stuff came up between them. It was like opening up an old wound.

Claus looked down at the water for a moment, before facing his bro. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have—“

“I know. I’m sorry, too. I should’ve—“

“Hey, no, we both know you wouldn’t have stopped me! I… I was a pretty stupid kid, and everything…!”

“Yeah. Yeah, bro, we both were pretty stupid kids.”

“Yeah…”

Fuel yawned, the sun beginning to dip fully under the horizon. “It’s good to have you back, bro.”


	31. Ripe

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> finally done lol

* * *

“Trick or treat!”

Fuel’s smile quickly faded into a frown as he watched another apple fall into his bag. He stared up at Jonel’s oblivious smile.

“Don’t you have anything  _ else _ ?”

“Sorry, sport,” Jones said, ruffling Fuel’s hair. “The forest would rather you eat something healthy.”

“But  _ I’d _ rather rot my teeth out!”

“Oh, knowing you,” Jonel laughed. “I’m sure you’ll figure out a way to do that without my help.”

And with that he ducked back inside his room, hastily leaving Fuel with his lackluster spoils. He peered into his bag, his disappointment growing with each apple he counted; 10 in total, plus the one singular fruit he just received… bringing him to eleven apples and no candy to speak of. It felt like some sort of sick joke, like everyone in Tazmily decided apples were candy.

Can’t a kid stuff his face with chocolate once a year?

No, I guess not. Fuel stormed out of the old folks home, deeming his outing a failure. Could it be his costume? No, it couldn’t, this was a top of the line costume! It definitely couldn’t have been the fact that he just threw a green mask and tablecloth on, that couldn’t have been it!

Aw, who was he kidding? He should’ve went as Obi-Wan again. But it wouldn’t work without an Anakin! And Claus was being stupidly stubborn this year—

That’s right! Claus! Maybe he managed to get something good! He probably used his whole metal arm thing or whatever for brown points! 

They were supposed to meet somewhere near the crossroads before heading home. Fuel immediately broke into a sprint in order to catch his friend, spurred on by the desire to at least wish him a good night before bed… but more so because he  _ really  _ wanted some candy.

* * *

Claus, luckily, had just arrived at the crossroads when Fuel came running. He, too, had tied a tablecloth around his neck, purple in color but just as lazily done. 

“Hey, bro!” Fuel called, running as fast as he could, despite his body’s protests. “Hey!” 

Claus waved back at him, but before he could even say anything Fuel’s hastiness immediately took its toll, as the boy’s shoe slammed into a particularly stubborn rock and knocked him off balance. He went down, his bag and it’s contents falling all over the ground. The bright red and green apples caught the moonlight as they scattered across the field. 

Claus tilted his head. “Geez, you trip a lot bro.”

“Ow…”

Claus took a quick glance at the fallen apples, gripping his bag just a bit tighter. “Apples, huh?”

“Yeah…” Fuel muttered, not bothering to get up. “They were the only thing I got, too,” he continued, defeated. “Please tell me you got a piece of candy or something, bro.”

“Sorry bro,” Claus replied, emoting his bag of apples and letting them fall on Fuel’s head. “All I got were apples too.”

“Ugh…” Fuel groaned. “Great.”

“Well, I  _ did  _ get this peanut butter cup—“

Fuel immediately jumped up. “ _ Gimmie! _ ”

Claus’s eyes widened as his friend reached for the chocolate. “H-Hey! No! Bro,  _ no—“ _

Keeping a ravenous Fuel at bay took up the rest of Claus’s halloween. Nothing was scarier, of course, then a kid desperate for any kind of sweet. 


End file.
